Several things today made me think of teachers that have influenced my life through the years.  I especially thought of one of the High School teachers that continues to have a big influence on my life.

Mr. Hill taught English and Journalism for 21 years at Ashland High School. Since we were a small school everyone took his Freshman and Junior English classes. He had an influence on an entire generation of Ashland students.

I heard many stories from students who graduated before me about how well they were prepared for College English after having Mr. Hill as a teacher in High School.

I would agree that I was well prepared as I was able to take Honors English when I went to college instead of a regular English class.

I also attribute many of my writing skills to what I learned in his classes. These skills are often used in my work as I help write service manuals, service bulletins and also training material.

Many of his students will remember, with mixed emotions, having to memorize the Parts of Speech and their Uses:. However, these definitions have helped me through the years. Even to help answer a Jeopardy question.

Mr. Hill also had a Novel List that he would hand out at the beginning of each year. We could read any book on the list and then take a test for extra credit.

Mr. Hill’s Novel List has more than 300 titles. I am not sure how often he updated the list, but the one I have is from the early 80’s.

I could always count on being able to consult Mr. Hill’s Novel List to find a good book to read. I eventually undertook a challenge to read all the books on the list.

Unfortunately I was not able to let Mr. Hill know that I had finished the challenge. He passed away a few years before I finished the list. I had spoken to him after I made it a challenge and was about half-way through the list.

Tucked away somewhere I have a copy of the sentence that students had to write when they got into trouble in his class. Yes, I had to write sentences at least one time 🙂

I also think of Mr. Hill whenever I hear or see the word facetious. I believe that it may have been his favorite word.

I also thought of some of my other High School teachers today and how they have continued to have an influence in my life. Many of my basic teaching techniques come from the good teachers that taught me.

I may write posts about some of the other teachers in the future.

Thank you Mr. Hill for being a great teacher!

Steven