Could depend on how the pencil was sitting on the pin, I've had my 1911 shoot it to the ceiling, then I have it at a slightly different angle and it only goes up a few inches.

Do a search for "Snap Caps". It's a safer way to practice dry firing. BTW, what's the point of shooting a pencil at a given distance? If it's merely a function check then you can stop the "measuring contest" and just pull the trigger. If you want to dry fire for training away specific bad habits then get some snap caps. Cheap insurance to avoid damaging your firearm by performing jackassery.

I forget which magazine I read about this in, but its a way to see if your firing pin is working after re-assembly. The only time I used it was the first time I completely dis-assembled my 1911 (to include the firing pin) and wanted the peace of mind of knowing it was working without an hour drive to the range.

There are snap caps with an internal laser available too. You can do a function check and get a flash of light to verify everything works. The pencil thing isn't totally accurate that the firing pin works, only that the hammer has struck it and that kenetic energy has passed through to the pancil ejecting it from the barrel. Knowing that the firing pin will properly contact the primer cannot be gauged by a pencil. That is all I'm saying. Do that search for "Snap Caps" like I suggested. I linked a couple of the laser types in one of those posts. The laser only lights when the primer is struck, as it is the momentary on switch as it was designed.