Originally published in TEACH Magazine, May/June 2025 Issue
By Eric Hall
I love to write. I think I first discovered my love for writing around the fourth grade. My teacher had this incredible gift for making us believe our words mattered. Even when we weren’t exactly eager to put pencil to paper, he found a way to spark something in us.
Whenever we shared what we’d written, he would rest his chin on his hands and listen—really listen—with a kind of focus that made you feel like your words were the most important thing in the world at that moment.
Getting kids to write in this day and age, however, where entertainment is merely a swipe away, can be like asking them to eat their vegetables—met with groans, bargaining, and the occasional dramatic gagging sound. Teaching writing is even harder when you have to cover the driest parts of grammar, like diagramming sentences or memorizing parts of speech. But perhaps the trickiest topic of all? Figurative language.
Eric Hall and his students have been featured on different national outlets, including The Ellen DeGeneres Show. While the accolades are nice, Eric will tell you his greatest rewards come in the form of high-fives in the hallway, students who finally “get it,” and the joy of watching kids realize they are capable of more than they ever imagined. If you’d like to reach out to Eric, feel free to contact him at [email protected].
