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Ms. Katie Storms
email: katiestorms@claytonschools.net
follow me on Twitter @Ms. Storms“We are cultivating citizens, humanitarians, change makers. We are contributing to critical, curious thinking. We are advocating for kindness and empathy. We create better worlds by making ourselves better. We advocate for wrapping yourself in layers of joy and playfulness, in the capacity to reflect honesty and make change when [we] see [ourselves] acting in biased or inflexible ways...We know that the revolution for a better world begins with [our] classroom.” --Christine Hertz and Kristine Mraz.
About Me:When I’m not reading, writing, or teaching, you can find me watercolor painting and handlettering, running the roads in my neighborhood, listening to vinyl records with my husband, hiking out West in the mountains, or singing lullabies with my daughters. And maybe visiting too many local bookstores and drinking too much local coffee. Before moving to St. Louis, I lived in Kansas City, Missouri—I even worked for the Kansas City Royals for eight years when I was a teenager. I studied English at Truman State University: my BA is in English, and my MA is in Secondary English Education. I currently reside in St. Louis with my husband, Johnny Vines, and my daughters, Penelope Belle and Della Irene. I teach College Prep English I and AP Language and Composition at Clayton High School in St.Louis.What I'm currently reading and recommending:This summer, I read books that made me think: Hard books about hard topics. And beautiful books about beautiful topics. My favorites from this summer are Lavinia by Ursula Le Guin, The Afrominimalist by Christine Platt, and Carry by Toni Jensen, and The Book of Longings by Sue Monk Kidd. Some others favorites are Beartown by Frederick Backman, There, There by Tommy Orange, Romona Blue by Julie Murphy, The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller, Empower by John Spencer, Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain by Zaretta Hammond. Some other favorites include The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas, Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson, and Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche. The nonfiction I love: Citizen by Claudia Rankine (essays and poems), Black Girl Baking by Jerrelle Guy, Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates, We Should All Be Feminists by Chimanda Ngozi Adiche, Butterfly Yellow by Thanhha Lai, and Rosewater and Orange Blossoms by Maureen Abood. And if you asked me to tell you my favorite novels, I'd start with a list something like this: LaRose by Louise Erdrich, Life of Pi by Yann Martel, On Earth We Are Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong, Winter's Bone by Daniel Woodrell, Claire of the Sealight by Edwidge Danticat, Ready Player One by Ernest Cline, The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt, Half a Yellow Sun by Chimanda Ngozi Adiche, The Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez.....my list can go on forever, and I am always asking friends, family, students, and families for new titles.
Course Information:
College Prep English One Course Overview
Honors English One Course Overview
I always look forward to conversations with students and parents. Please email mail me, and I will get back to you as soon as possible.
