April 12, 2005—On Tuesday, April 12, many San Diego schoolchildren will sport hair that is teased, spiked, dyed, tied, and definitely outrageous. It’s not some sort of new dress code or kid protest. It’s all in fun and it’s in celebration of a citywide reading event called Crazy Hair Day.

From Poway Unified to the Boys and Girls Club of National City, over 200 volunteers will read the Barney Saltzberg book Crazy Hair Day—a story that honors children’s creative uniqueness—to children at area schools, libraries and clubs. Spearheaded by the Children’s Museum/Museo de los Niños San Diego and now in its second year, Crazy Hair Day promotes literacy and celebrates creativity, central to the Museum’s mission.

The author Barney Saltzberg will be in San Diego for the festivities and will make appearances at Central Elementary School and children’s bookstore Yellow Book Road in La Mesa. To show support for Crazy Hair Day as part of its ongoing commitment to literacy, Starbucks Coffee Company will be hosting in-store readings at select San Diego Starbucks locations and has provided a donation to purchase 500 copies of Crazy Hair Day for use at all related events around the city. San Diego’s favorite creative destination for kids and families since 1983, the new Children’s Museum will rise in early 2008 as a 50,000 square-foot facility. An integral part of the revitalization of downtown, the building is being designed by the award-winning architect, Rob Wellington Quigley, FAIA. The new Museum will not only serve as a valuable community resource but also as an architectural icon, a premier world-class attraction and a top family-tourist destination, ensuring San Diego’s reputation as “America’s Finest City.” For more information visit childrensmuseumsd.org.