Central Plains Library System

Deb’s Preschool Project – May

Posted on April 4, 2025 by Denise

Deb’s craft projects feature shapes made by the System’s die cutting equipment. Our intent is to save our CPLS librarians valuable time each month. Place your order for the craft materials before the posted deadline by emailing Deb at cplsasst@gmail.com. There is no charge for this service.

The Preschool Projects are provided for the months of September through May. Since we work one month ahead, this is the last craft for this session. Watch for the September craft on August 1st.

This butterfly has her own personality, and she is ready to fly into spring. Your preschoolers will need school glue to attach the wings (handprints) to the craft stick. If you choose, you could provide markers to color the craft stick. We will send googly eyes, a half chenille stem, and stickers to complete each craft.

The deadline to request the butterfly craft is April 21, 2025.

Here are some books that Deb recommends for your story time.

My, Oh My–A Butterfly! All About Butterflies, by Tish Rabe
(The Cat in the Hat’s Learning Library)
3-6 years old

Pinkalicious and the Little Butterfly
by Victoria Kann
3-5 years old

Explore My World Butterflies
by Marfe Ferguson Delano
2-6 years old

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Deb’s Preschool Project – April

Posted on February 27, 2025 by Denise

This colorful and fuzzy caterpillar is not only easy to make, but also fun to play with! Use school glue to attach the 6″ puppet handle to the cardstock caterpillar. Then glue on the colorful 1″ pom poms, and the fun begins.

Order your craft supplies by emailing Deb at cplsasst@gmail.com by March 18, 2025.

Here are some books Deb recommends for your story time.

Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
1-3 years

Jack and the Caterpillar by Bryan Fleegel
2-8 years

Caterpillar to Butterfly by Laura Marsh
3-6 years

Monarch Butterfly by Gail Gibbons
4-8 years

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New Games to Borrow

Posted on December 10, 2024 by Denise

Blokus XL is the perfect strategy game for the whole family — it takes less than a minute to learn with fun challenges for all ages!

Players take turns placing their 21 pieces on the board: each piece must touch another of the same color, but only at the corners!

Blokus Duo is a unique strategy game that offers a fun challenge for two players, age 7 and up!

The game ends when no more pieces can be placed down, and the player with fewer pieces remaining wins!

Blokus Trigon reimagines the classic Blokus game with a triangular twist! The goal is to fit the most pieces on the board.

Be careful! You can block and be blocked at any moment. Stake your claim and protect your territory.

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Deb’s January Preschool Project

Posted on December 3, 2024 by Denise

These craft projects feature shapes made by the System’s die cutting equipment. Our intent is to save our CPLS librarians valuable time each month. Place your order for the craft materials before the posted deadline by emailing Deb at cplsasst@gmail.com. There is no charge for this service.

These five little snowmen are in a snow globe made with two colors of cardstock. The base needs to be trimmed with scissors on the dotted line and then the three pieces can be assembled with school glue or glue sticks. The children will need a crayon or marker to add the faces and hats. Snowflake stickers are provided.

Please email your request early since Deb will be out of the office close to the holidays.

Deadline: December 17th.

Recommended Story Time books:

How to Catch a Snowman by Adam Wallace

3-6 years old

The Snow Thief by Alice Heming

4-8 years old

Sneezy the Snowman by Maureen Wright

3-6 years old

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CPLS Office Closed for Thanksgiving

Posted on November 27, 2024 by Denise

The Central Plains Library System Office will be closed Thursday, November 28 and Friday, November 29 for the Thanksgiving holiday.

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Posted on November 25, 2024 by Denise

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Penguin Random House & United for Libraries Announce New Grants for Friends of Libraries

Posted on October 24, 2024 by Denise

In celebration of National Friends of Libraries Week, we’ve teamed up with Penguin Random House to announce new grants for Friends Groups serving rural and small libraries across the country. Grants of $500 and $1,000 (totaling $25,000), will be awarded to support libraries in need. In addition, we’ll also be awarding:
–One year of complimentary eLearning from United for Libraries (includes Learning Live sessions) for grant recipients.
—Book donation grants of $500 for 20 libraries to purchase titles from Penguin Random House.
—Free training on how to leverage the grant funds to build support for the library and the Friends group.

Applications will be open from Feb. 3-17, 2025.

Register for free info sessions on this grant program, free training on grant writing and/or starting a new Friends group, or sign up to receive updates about this grant.

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Apply Now to Receive Up to $10,000 in Digital Literacy Funding from PLA

Posted on October 7, 2024 by Denise

Digital Literacy Workshop Incentives

The Public Library Association (PLA) has expanded digital literacy funding opportunities and resources for public libraries, powered by a generous $2.7 million contribution from AT&T. Applications for the PLA Digital Literacy Workshop Incentives are open through Friday, October 18, 2024.

PLA Digital Literacy Workshop Incentive, supported by AT&T—This program will award $10,000 to large public libraries and $5,000 to small public libraries, as well as provide the necessary training resources, to conduct workshops that teach basic digital literacy skills using PLA’s DigitalLearn courses and training materials.

PLA Digital Navigator Workshop Incentive, supported by AT&T—This new pilot program will award $4,000 to public libraries with digital navigators to utilize DigitalLearn materials and resources. Libraries must already have a digital navigator to apply.

Learn More and Apply

DigitalLearn is PLA’s free digital literacy training toolkit, which includes self-directed courses that teach basic digital skills, as well as resources for trainers. With support from AT&T as part of AT&T Connected Learning and the company’s commitment to bridging the digital divide, PLA has also been able to add and update more than a dozen online DigitalLearn courses and develop 9 new complete training packages – and even more new and improved courses are coming soon! DigitalLearn courses and materials are available in English and Spanish and are completely free to use.

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Make a Cemeterrarium!

Posted on September 26, 2024 by Denise

If you watch the recording, don’t forget to turn in one CEU.

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Deb’s Preschool Projects

Posted on September 9, 2024 by Denise

Get ready for October with this spooky craft. Please email Deb at cplsasst@gmail.com with the number of craft kits you need.

The children will assemble this quick and easy craft with the glue of your choice. This project will fit on an 8.5″ x 11″ background sheet of your choice. The design is 7.5″ w x 8″ h. The order deadline is September 23, 2024. There is no charge for this service.

Batty Book Suggestions:

Stellaluna by Janell Cannon