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Shana Keller

@shanakellerwrites

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Award Winning Children's Author ✒️🖤
✨️Irma Black Honor ✨️Jr. Library Guild Gold ✨️CBC Best STEM ✨ Rep'd @jazmiayoung | @curtisbrown
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We are thrilled to introduce Shana. Shana Keller is the Director and Lead Educator at Topsail Apogee, where she brings together a lifelong curiosity about how the world works with a passion for innovation, exploration, and educational excellence. Her interest in science began early: as a child growing up in Middle America, she was endlessly fascinated by questions as simple—and as profound—as how clouds could stay in the sky. That instinct to ask why and how has remained at the center of her approach to education and continues to drive her commitment to cross-disciplinary STEM and STEAM learning. ➡️ Shana’s academic foundation began at the University of Miami, Florida, and includes screenwriting studies at UCLA and songwriting courses at Berklee College of Music. She believes that creativity and analytical thinking are not opposing forces; rather, the strongest learning happens when students are encouraged to use both. Her interdisciplinary approach allows literature, history, mathematics, science, engineering, and the arts to intersect naturally, giving students multiple ways to investigate a question and demonstrate what they have learned. Her extensive travels throughout the United States and Europe, along with a life shaped by frequent moves, have given Shana a broad perspective on cultures, communities, and diverse learning environments. Her experience as a substitute educator with the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) further developed her ability to adapt to highly transient school communities and reinforced the importance of flexibility, leadership, and service in education. At Topsail Apogee, Shana translates these experiences into hands-on, project-based learning designed to turn curiosity into action. Students are encouraged to investigate real-world questions, experiment with ideas, build and test solutions, learn from failure, and approach challenges from multiple perspectives An award-winning children’s author, Shana has built her career around making complex ideas accessible, engaging, and meaningful to young learners. Her books include Do You Know Them?, a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard selection, and Bread for Words: A F by @shanakellerwrites
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19 days ago
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Looking for a picture book that teaches perseverance and is the perfect addition to your elementary STEM shelf? Introduce your kids to Benjamin Banneker. 🕰⚙️ As a child, Benjamin Banneker didn't have access to advanced schools or fancy tools. But he had an endless supply of curiosity. At just 22 years old, he took apart a borrowed pocket watch, drew meticulous diagrams of its tiny gears, and spent a couple of years whittling his own striking clock out of wood. It kept perfect time for decades! Ticktock Banneker's Clock is a picture book biography that bridges history and STEM. I fell in love with this story because it shows young readers that resourcefulness, patience, and determination can help you build extraordinary things from scratch. I wanted to write a book that makes forgotten history feel inspiring and relevant to a child's everyday world. If you are looking for inspiring mentor texts that celebrate resilience and early American history, save this post for your next library or bookstore trip! 📚 #nonfiction #bookrecs #stemeducation by @shanakellerwrites
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a month ago
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I met Master Gunnery Sergeant Carroll Braxton and Gunnery Sergeant F.M. Hooper four years ago when I attended my first Annual Montford Point Marines Day & Congressional Gold Medal Ceremony. They are some of the last, original Marines of Montford Point. Master Gunnery Sergeant Braxton recently celebrated his 102nd birthday (he was not in attendance), and Gunnery Sergeant Hooper just marked his 98th milestone as well. I’m grateful I was able to witness the ceremony today. Even only four years later, it’s a little heartbreaking to see how few originals are left. Their story is so important to share. Though I’ve faced many rejections trying to tell it, they didn’t give up, and neither will I. 🕊️🎖️📖🖋 taken in Montford Point Marine Museum by @shanakellerwrites
2
2 months ago
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The fact that they asked me if I rescued it. 🥲 Actually it was sad and it was a first to see a run over book in the parking lot. 😥 #bookrescue #classics #thecrucible #funny by @shanakellerwrites
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2 months ago
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Fractured Tales or Fractured Lives? I recently sat down with two brilliant, fellow Charlesbridge authors, Caroline Brewer and JaNay Brown-Wood, to discuss the power of folktales, fairy tales, and fractured fairy tales in children's literature. We talked a lot about the craft of taking classic stories and completely flipping them on their heads, but the conversation struck a deeply personal chord for me. It made me realize that "fracturing" a narrative isn't just a literary tool. It is an act of pure, raw courage. To change a story - whether it is the one on the page or the one you are living - requires you to break the old rules to build something truer. In real life, rewriting your own narrative is terrifying. It takes immense bravery to look at your current path and say, "This format isn't working for me anymore. I am choosing a different direction." And what requires even more courage? Asking for help. I’ve mentioned it before, but it still holds true - especially if you’ve been shot down in the past. The key is to not give up. Something will give. For the longest time, I thought strength meant fighting every dragon in isolation. But true heroes rarely finish their quests alone; they need allies, mentors, and community. Admitting you need support isn't a sign of weakness. It is the ultimate act of bravery because it means you believe your story is worth saving. Whether you are fracturing an old tale to give unheard voices a seat at the table, or shattering old habits to rebuild your life, remember: you hold the pen. 😉 ✍️🏽💙 #RewriteYourStory #AuthorInterview #CreativeWriting by @shanakellerwrites
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3 months ago
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DESTINED TO WRITE Plotlines & deadlines; redlines & breadlines (🤭😁) 🫖📝📚 by @shanakellerwrites
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3 months ago
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I'm incredibly honored to see this project recognized by @bankstreetschoolforchildren ✨️💖 It was a journey of the heart and a journey of faith, and seeing it resonate at this level means everything.😊 by @shanakellerwrites
2
3 months ago
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The best part about local events is when your friends show up!!! 💓😊 We had storytime at the Hampstead library today!! First we read The Sole Man, a true story about Jan Ernst Matzeliger's incredible invention, and then we made shoes!! 📚👞 Check out Pender County Libraries for all their summer events and reading challenges!! ☀️📚 #storytime #STEM #library by @shanakellerwrites
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4 months ago
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CeeCee: Underground Railroad Cinderella has been nominated for the 2026–2027 Black-Eyed Susan Award in the Picture Book category!! 🎉💫🎉 What makes this especially meaningful is the community behind this award--librarians and students coming together to celebrate stories and a love of reading. That connection between books and young readers is everything. 💛 I’m so thankful to be included in a program that gives stories the chance to spark conversations, inspire questions, and connect with young readers. 🌼📚😊 by @shanakellerwrites
11
4 months ago
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Time for another wildlife adventure. Meet...Burney!! 😁🐢💚 He's so cute. I think the messages here are to stay grounded. Home is where your heart is. And though progress might feel unbearably slow at times, as long as you're moving forward...it's still progress. #keepthefaith #turtlewisdom #natureheals by @shanakellerwrites
2
5 months ago
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Random tbr mix, but they all have a purpose. 🤗📚 I do miss the days of summer reading when *adulting* wasn't even a thing. ☀️ #amreading #history by @shanakellerwrites
1
5 months ago
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One of the most meaningful moments from my talk with the students at ODU was being reminded that while it's vital to know how to ask for help, it's equally important to know how to give it. It's a simple rule for how we carry each other... brought to us by a very intuitive fourth grader! 🏛🎙✨️🧩 #studentforlife #alwayslearning by @shanakellerwrites
7
6 months ago
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