LARGO, Fla. — The Pinellas County School Board is focusing on age-appropriate books, including with a workshop Tuesday for teachers, administrators and parents to get a better understanding of what resources children should have access to in the classroom.

Other school boards in the Bay area have put a spotlight on certain reading materials. Now, some Pinellas parents are weighing in.

Parent Audra Christian said this was a long time coming.

Parents for years have been concerned about what their children are reading at school, Christian said. Parents will get a big opportunity to do so with a major role to play in the workshop.

"I would say nine out of 10 parents are flabbergasted that this is even on a bookshelf,” Christian said of some books.  

Books on sex education and gender identity are just some of the many topics Christian said should be filtered out for younger kids.

Christian is an administrator for the Pinellas County School Parent’s Facebook group. With more than 2,000 members, she said parents’ posts have been shocking.

So now, the Pinellas County School Board will review, as well as educate, teachers and librarians on what is age appropriate according to state law, which says books should be available to children who would normally have access to these kinds of materials.

“If it’s not age appropriate, it shouldn’t be taught,” Christian said. “It’s hard for their little minds to wrap their heads around these concepts, and they just need to wait until they are older.”

The workshop will focus on not just the topics in these books, but also the characters.

Are characters around the same age as the reader? Can students relate to the topics?

The state of Florida has provided schools the names and web addresses of approved websites that can interpret those concepts quickly.

And now, every Pinellas County school will have to sort and select their books by Sept. 30.

“I don’t think there is necessarily someone out there with an agenda, as much as things move quickly, people pass stuff through, and when something like this is found, yes, there is an explosion,” Christian said. “But it’s really good to know that PCSB are actively working with parents and listening to their concerns.”

Christian said it’s not about removing these books entirely either but said that if certain conversations aren’t in the household, it shouldn’t be in the classroom.