Dear Friends,          It's a new school year and we have hit the ground running! The most important and exciting announcement is that on October 7 over 2.5 million kids, across the country, will be reading THE SNOWY DAY. Get more details below and join us in this Keats extravaganza!      In newsletters to come, we will be letting you know about changes in the Minigrant application process and calendar, how to become our friend on Facebook, catch us on Twitter and enjoy more features on our website.      We hope you welcome these updates! And please, tell your friends to visit our site with their kids.      All best for a great autumn,                                                              Sincerely,                                                      Deborah Pope                                                       Executive Director                                                              Ezra Jack Keats Foundation     JOIN 2.5 MILLION CHILDREN READING THE SNOWY DAY OCTOBER 7, 2010         On October 7th we expect over 2.5 million children to enjoy reading The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats. To commemorate this wonderful book Jumpstart will be holding special readings of The Snowy Day at Peter's Statue in Prospect Park's Imagination Playground between the hours of 2-4 on                              October 7th.      Across the way we will be doing fun "Snowy Day" craft activities under the Oriental Pavilion. Jumpstart has invited preschoolers from the Fort Hamilton Army Base to share in the fun, but all young children who would like to participate are welcome. Should the October 7th forecast call for "The RAINY Day" we will move our activities to the Brooklyn Public Library and will send out another announcement on October 6 telling you about the location change.      Jumpstart's Read for the Record, now in its 5th year, is a national initiative to raise awareness of the importance of early childhood education by setting a world record for the greatest number of children reading the same book with an adult on the same day. Jumpstart has a history of breaking records. Last year, we had two million children read The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. On the morning of October 7th the main branches of the Boston, Chicago and San Francisco Libraries will all be holding Snowy Day readings and craft activities with young children. Call the library in your neighborhood and ask if there is a SNOWY DAY reading nearby in which you can participate with your child on October 7!