As advisers, every time we change something about our yearbook operations, there is bound to be some resistance. I saw the need for one significant change: go from a May to an August delivery to include spring coverage. To make that significant of a change, though, I had to first change the class from an editor-centered to a student-centered class.
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Staff Management
Few things are available for free, but new journalism teachers in more states can get assistance for free from the Journalism Education Association’s Mentor Program.
October is a great month to schedule some bonding and morale-boosting activities. Food is part of many ideas listed here. But this year, join Walsworth in dressing up for Halloween. Share your costume pictures with us, and we’ll be posting ours.
With the Fall National High School Journalism Convention just around the corner next month, read what some experienced yearbook advisers have to say about the value of attending the national conventions and how you can make the trip easier.
For more than 20 years, National Yearbook Week has been celebrated on this week in October. This year, we want to make sure everyone is in on the party.
Keep your staff motivated and feeling good about their work. Do that by telling them and telling others. Reminding them of the good job they are doing will help overcome those challenging times when things are not going right, or a deadline is approaching and there is too much work.
Yearbooks thrive on ideas. Designs, photos, articles, themes – all the elements of a yearbook need them. The thoughts generated from frequent brainstorming sessions are the lifeblood of any publication.
Before the yearbook staff can get down to business creating the yearbook, it’s important to create the right atmosphere in the yearbook room. Developing the right culture will set the proper tone for the year.
When you paint a room, the first thing you do is the prep work. Creating a yearbook is like painting a room. You and your staff need to do the prep work: plan, think what look you want to achieve; and check your tools. Then create. If all of those things have been done, you should have the book you envisioned.
About halfway through my first year teaching yearbook at a small private school in Lawrence, Kan., my students’ motivation was waning. The problem? The staff wanted yearbooks to matter, but they weren’t sure that they did. Enter Hollywood.
