For generations, Syd Hoff’s “Danny and the Dinosaur” has offered young readers a fun, easy-to-digest tale of what life might be like with a prehistoric friend.
When creating its new language arts standards, the Florida Department of Education included the 1958 book on its list of materials for teachers seeking to include “rich and meaningful texts” in their first grade classrooms.
Adam Graham and Brian Hawley, two former Pinellas County educators, have contended the book doesn’t belong in any school — not to mention on the state recommended list. The Pinellas district has 46 copies, including Spanish and recorded versions, in various elementary libraries.
