S R E S VI D A W E N K O O B R A E Y O T E D UI G D L E FI Yearbook TE UI S Copyright 2016 by Walsworth Yearbooks All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher. Published in the United States of America by Walsworth Inc., Marceline, Missouri Corporate Office: 306 North Kansas Ave., Marceline, MO 64658 800-265-6795 Yearbook Sales and Marketing Office: 7300 West 110th Street, Suite 600, Overland Park, KS 66210 800-369-2965 For more information about this curriculum guide or any other Walsworth products and services, visit walsworthyearbooks.com or call 800-972-4968. Acknowledgments Jill Chittum, MJE, Unit Author and Walsworth Yearbooks sales representative Mike Taylor, Unit Author and Journalism Specialist for Walsworth Yearbooks Alex Blackwell, Vice President of Marketing and Communications Kristin Mateski, CJE, Manager, Yearbook Marketing Jamie Chambers, Design and Creative Concepting Supervisor Sarah Roberts, Graphic Designer Elizabeth Braden, CJE, Communications Editor Evan Blackwell, Copywriter Consultants Emily Pyeatt Arnold, CJE, Yearbook Adviser, Haltom High School, Haltom City, Texas Erica King, Yearbook Adviser, Silver Creek High School, San Jose, California Susan Colyer, Yearbook Adviser, Southside High School, Fort Smith, Arkansas Front cover photo by Grace Krakora NBy JMill EiCkeh iTtaWtuymlo,r MJouJrEna W lisamls wSApoertchia YleiDsat, rWboaolsVkws oSrathle YsI eRaerpSbroeoseksntaEtive RS and K O O B R A E Y O T E D UI G D L E FI 4 Yearbook Suite | New Advisers Field Guide to Yearbook S R E S I DV A W E N K O O B R A E Y O T E D UI G D L E FI Congratulations! You have been given the job of yearbook adviser. You have this all under control. After all, you’re a professional educator; you went to college to learn how to teach. You may even already be a veteran teacher. It is all going to be great. It really is! No other classroom has the rewards you will find in the yearbook room. You will work with some of the best and brightest students on campus. You will challenge them to excel beyond their wildest dreams. You will shepherd students through completing a product encompassing a year’s worth of work and memories. That product will be cherished long past your lifetime. There will be nights where you laugh, cry and cheer, all in a matter of five minutes. There will be nights where you dream of your students, the yearbook and yes, summer vacation. During all of those nights, we are here to help you, guide you and answer questions. This unit is comprised of five sections. Each section contains practical and time- tested suggestions, a checklist to help you stay focused, and everything you need to be successful from day one. These sections include: PREPARING YOU PREPARING YOUR CLASSROOM PREPARING YOUR STUDENTS PREPARING YOUR SCHOOL PREPARING TO END THE YEAR As the year progresses, this unit will help you achieve two important goals: to educate your students and to create a good yearbook, defined as a historical record of one year at your school that includes all of the people, especially the students, and events and occurrences in their lives. 1 walsworthyearbooks.com New Advisers Field Guide to Yearbook | Yearbook Suite Section 1 Preparing you “Depending on your prior knowledge, there is a lot to learn about journalism, photography, and design – let alone managing children in a non- traditional environment, dealing with expensive equipment, and scaffolding the biggest project- based learning task. Use all the help you can get, Photo by Chankele Winfield and make realistic goals for yourself. Your first task should be classroom management – how will you structure your routines and work expectations so that students are productive and quality work is done on time. This must come before content, otherwise you will have an incomplete yearbook and behavioral issues.” - Erica King, adviser, Silver Creek High School, San Jose, California 22 YYeeaarrbbooookk SSuuiittee || NNeeww AAddvviisseerrss FFiieelldd GGuuiiddee ttoo YYeeaarrbbooookk DEFINE YOUR One thing you might not know is that a yearbook R O L E adviser wears many hats: first and foremost, teacher of yearbook journalism curriculum and skills; but you are also a mentor, the CEO of a small business, public relations specialist, historian, project manager and salesperson, among other duties. One of the first things to think about when it comes to preparing yourself for the role of yearbook adviser is what your day-to-day style/role will be. HANDS-ON COACH MENTOR I need to be able to do every job of I provide resources and I’m available for consultation every staff member. motivation, but staffers need to whenever staffers need help or make the magic happen. direction. I train editors, managers and staff. I train the editors and managers, and The previous year’s editors and they train the staff. managers train the new editors and managers, and they train the staff. If a new skill is needed, I learn the skill If a new skill is needed, I find a If a new skill is needed, I suggest ways so I can train it from experience. resource who can train it from that editors may find a resource who experience. can train it from experience. I assign all deadlines. I work with my editors to help them My editors assign all deadlines. assign deadlines. I proofread and edit every page of I review editing done by editors, I assign the submission deadlines, and the yearbook before submission. coach as needed to help editors work with my editors to assign mini- improve, and proofread the result deadlines. I proofread every page. before submission. I attend events with each The photo editor attends events with The photo editor will inform me if photographer to identify any issues each photographer to identify any there is a training issue, and I’ll help and/or training needs. issues and/or training needs. identify solution options. I grade all work. Editors and managers assist with Editors and managers submit grade grading. recommendations for my review and approval. I handle sales and marketing, My staff handles sales and My staff handles sales and marketing, assigning jobs to the marketing marketing, but the school and the marketing or business manager and staff. bookkeeper or I take care of the manager takes care of the money. money. I manage the yearbook staff to keep I actively assist editors in managing Editors manage the yearbook staff to them on task and motivated. the yearbook staff and in keeping keep them on task and motivated. I them on task and motivated. assist if there is an issue. I am in charge of distribution, My staff organizes and runs assigning duties to staff. My staff and I together organize and distribution. I am available to field run distribution. complaints. Since this is your first year, you might feel the need to be hands-on with the production of the book, but as you gain experience, you should become a coach. In most schools, the yearbook is a student-driven project and should be completely student produced. Consider the football coach – he doesn’t take the field and play the game. He trains the students to play. Your role is to give your yearbook staff the tools and skills they need to be successful throughout the process. Now that you’ve thought about that, it’s time to meet with several people and start a calendar. The next few pages will walk you through all that. 3 walsworthyearbooks.com New Advisers Field Guide to Yearbook | Yearbook Suite Photo by Kelsey Crawford MEET WITH YOUR ADMINISTRATOR Meet with your principal and any assistants in the administration who have been involved with the yearbook program to inquire about yearbook policies, such as these: • Ask whether there are any prior review policies in place. With prior review, administrators or others in authority who are not on the yearbook staff read everything before it goes to print. Note that this makes the school liable for content issues. Under a public forum, the yearbook is a form of student expression and students make all of the decisions about the publication. • Find out about the policy for parents who do not want their students in the book and obtain any of those records. • Get approval to do all-calls and emails to parents to sell your yearbook and ads (see the Marketing and Sales section below). It is important to start early in the school year and to reach students and parents three to five times with your message that yearbooks are on sale and when and where to buy. Make it a priority to establish a positive and open relationship with the administration. 4 Yearbook Suite | New Advisers Field Guide to Yearbook GRAB YOUR CALENDAR As a classroom teacher, you’re probably using a calendar to plan lessons and units of curriculum. As a yearbook adviser, you’ll need that calendar to also function as a deadline and event planner. Events that fill a yearbook staff’s school year include: • Senior portrait day • School picture day • School picture retake day • Ad sales deadlines • Book sales deadlines • Club picture day • Page submission deadlines to the printer • State and local competitions • Distribution day – the day that makes the hard work worth it! Add Senior Portrait Day or days to the calendar in June if your professional photographer comes to the school to take portraits. Send home information to junior parents in April or May so they know when it is, and reserve a classroom or other area for the photographer to work in. Make sure you hand out a flier telling parents where to buy the yearbook. “Because we are a 40+% free and reduced lunch, I requested a no-cost, yearbook-only senior portrait (no sitting fee, no deposit, no purchasing of portraits) to accommodate all of our students. Students came to my classroom to sign up rather than making an appointment with the company.” - Erica King, adviser, Silver Creek High School, San Jose, California MEET WITH YOUR SCHOOL'S PHOTOGRAPHER More than likely, your school has chosen a photography company. This company will take individual student and faculty portraits, and then will provide you with electronic images for the yearbook. Find information on the photographer your school uses and whether these photo dates have been set. If not, meet with them immediately. The school photographer may also offer additional services. Be sure to see the contract they have with your school. Also, find out who traditionally gets the commission check, the school or the yearbook program. 5 walsworthyearbooks.com New Advisers Field Guide to Yearbook | Yearbook Suite SCHEDULE PICTURE DAYS These are the most-common picture days that need to be scheduled. Add these dates to your calendar and to the school’s calendar by working with your administrator who handles facilities and your activities director to determine location, how students will be allowed out of class, and dates that accommodate all parties. • Student, faculty and staff picture day • Retake student, faculty and staff picture day • Club pictures • Sports team pictures – schedule a day for each sports season • Dances – add these if your professional photographer will be taking these photos Whether a professional photographer or a member of your staff takes the portraits, you need to figure out a plan for getting students to the photo area. With clubs and teams, you need a plan for getting them to the photo area and for getting their names in the order each photo is taken. Here are some tips for picture days: • If you are responsible for picture days, talk to your administrator to find out your responsibilities. Photo by Nely Martinez • Request a substitute to fill in for your regular classroom duties. You cannot be in two places at one time. Administrators might expect you to bring your classes down to the area where photos are being taken. This really isn’t ideal – it’s hard to supervise two separate activities at one time. • Ask yearbook staffers to help on picture days. You don’t need your entire staff for the whole day. You might try pulling just your editors from class, or you might set up a schedule where students who have study halls or teacher aide hours help during those times. • Prior to club picture day, obtain a roster of every club, club officer and club member. Send memos to the sponsors indicating the times for photos. If possible, schedule each club photo during that club sponsor’s planning time. This task that will require some planning. • Make arrangements for the club sponsor to have passes for all members to be released to the photo area. • Once the club members are in the photo area, arrange them on the bleachers or stands. There should be front row, second row, third row, etc., and finally back row. • While one club or team is being photographed, arrange the next club. If possible, have more than one photo area for taking group photos. • To get the names of club members, clipboards can be passed down each row and have the students print their names. A yearbook staffer could be assigned to type in names on a laptop. 6 Yearbook Suite | New Advisers Field Guide to Yearbook