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Colorado Early Childhood Family Engagement Framework

The purpose of the Colorado Early Childhood Family Engagement Framework (Framework) is to define and identify important family engagement concepts to be applied across early childhood sectors. While many family engagement models are developed with the education sector as the main context, the Colorado Early Childhood Family Engagement Framework is intended for organizations across early childhood sectors, such as pediatricians and social services organizations to guide a systematic and broad shift in the way services are designed and provided to families and young children in a variety of service contexts.

The Colorado Early Childhood Family Engagement Framework will help to organize thinking and mobilize action for entities engaging with families in Colorado. It provides an anchor to which organizations and individuals can align their own strategies and actions.

The Framework was developed through a collaborative effort led by the Colorado Department of Early Childhood with the support of the Early Childhood Leadership Commission,  funded by the state’s Preschool Development Grant Birth-Five.

The checklist was created by families, community members, and early childhood professionals
and includes concrete actions for organizations serving children and families from prenatal to age five to support effective family engagement. These actions are some of the ways organizations can partner with families using the four family engagement principles in the Framework.