On Wednesday, February 28, 2024, all of the students at Washington Elementary School got to spend time with an author in their school. Gary Hogg, author of the Spencer’s Adventures and Charlie Bacon books series, plus other books for young readers, visited the school thanks to funds from Altrusa International of Pendleton and the Parent Club at Washington.
Hogg started the all-school assembly by relating a story of him and his children encountering spider monkeys in the jungle on a family trip. His descriptions of a monkey jumping in the car and several of his children trying to get the monkey out of the car had Washington Wildcats engaged and laughing. Hogg explained that everyone has stories to tell. “You have a voice in the world, and the world needs your author’s voice,” Hogg told the students.
When he was in elementary school, Hogg told jokes to his fourth-grade teacher, who finally encouraged Hogg to turn those jokes into stories into books that would be read worldwide. And that’s what Hogg has done. He encouraged students to listen to their teachers, who are working hard for students and whose “superpower is hearts that hold hope for all of their students.”
After the school-wide assembly, Hogg conducted workshops in the school library with each grade level. During the fifth grade, the author outlined a few strategies for effective writing:
- Use fancy colors
- Use interesting size descriptions
- Put names on things
- Describe places
- Be a detail detective
Students then worked on writing personal narratives. One last piece of advice from Hogg was, “Remember, there is only one you in the world. When you write, to be powerful, you have to be original.”
Gary Hogg grew up in Burley, Idaho, with a mom who loved to read and a dad who loved horses. He is the author of 26 books and has visited more than 3,700 schools. Learn more about him at garyhoggbooks.com
