The new school year is here, and so are our Timely Tips Lesson Plans! We’re excited to launch the first edition of the 2026 series with a yearbook staff management lesson plan designed to help you set the tone for success from day one.
Timely Tips provides advisers with ready-to-use lesson plans on yearbook essentials, from staff management and team-building to coverage, photography, marketing and more. Each plan is designed to meet the needs of advisers and staff at the moments in the school year when they’re most useful.
This week, we’re kicking things off with a plan focused on building connections and establishing expectations. The Setting Expectations for Success lesson helps your students create a collaborative staff handbook that will serve as the foundation for your team’s culture throughout the year.
Why Start the Year With Expectations?
Every yearbook staff, whether it’s a class or a club, is made up of diverse personalities, skill levels and commitments. Without clear expectations, it’s easy for deadlines to slip, communication to break down and frustrations to build. By beginning the year with a staff handbook, you’re not only setting rules but also creating a shared vision of how your team will function.
This process does more than just list responsibilities. It gives students a voice in shaping the environment they’ll work in all year. When staff members help define expectations, they’re far more likely to feel ownership, accountability and pride in living up to them.
Pairing this with a fun team-building exercise ensures that trust and camaraderie come first. A staff that laughs and collaborates together from the start will be better prepared to tackle the challenges of creating a yearbook.
This Week’s Lesson Plan: Setting Expectations for Success
This lesson begins with a team-building activity chosen by you, the adviser. You can select an option from our 30 Days of Ice Breakers for Your Yearbook Staff blog or one of your own favorite activities. Popular choices include tower-building challenges, the Human Knot or quick icebreaker games that get students moving and talking. If you’re looking for even more inspiration, our Team Builders for the Yearbook Classroom training video features Mike Taylor, CJE, Jim Jordan and Sabrina Schmitz, CJE, sharing their tried-and-true staff-building activities.
Once students have warmed up and built some rapport, the class will shift into creating a staff handbook:
- Brainstorming: Each student writes 3-5 expectations or responsibilities on sticky notes. These can range from meeting deadlines and contributing ideas to respecting editors and staying on task.
- Small Group Work: Students organize sticky notes into themes like communication, conduct, deadlines and teamwork. Each group drafts 3-5 handbook statements from their category.
- Presentation: Groups share their drafts with the class while editors or the adviser compile them into one working document.
- Wrap-Up: As a class, reflect on why it matters to create expectations together. Discuss which handbook statements will be most important for success and how the handbook will help prevent conflict.
The draft handbook can then be refined by the editors or leadership team and finalized during the next class or meeting. Once complete, all staff members sign it as a commitment contract, reinforcing accountability for the year ahead.
Key Takeaways From the Lesson
- Establishing Culture Early: Creating a handbook together ensures expectations are clear before the first deadline approaches.
- Building Student Ownership: When students help write the rules, they buy into them – reducing conflicts and improving accountability.
- Practicing Collaboration: Brainstorming, grouping ideas and drafting handbook statements mirrors the teamwork students will rely on throughout the year.
- Creating a Lasting Resource: The finished handbook becomes more than a document; it’s a symbol of your staff’s shared values and goals.
Supporting Resources
Looking for tools to extend this week’s lesson? Explore these resources:
- 30 Days of Ice Breakers for Your Yearbook Staff – As mentioned above, this blog from Orange Glen High School adviser Jessica Young, MJE, offers fun activities to energize your team and break down barriers.
- Team Builders for the Yearbook Classroom – Hear from the pros in this training video as Mike Taylor, CJE, Jim Jordan and Sabrina Schmitz, CJE, share strategies to build trust and unity.
- Why Every Staff Needs a Policy Manual – Learn why written expectations are essential for staff success in this blog by El Dorado High School adviser Vanessa Martinez, CJE.
- “Staff Management Through Team Building” – Our Yearbook Suite curriculum unit designed to help advisers establish positive staff culture and collaboration.
Final Thoughts
Starting the year with a clear set of expectations and a united staff culture can make all the difference in your yearbook program’s success. This lesson plan not only helps your students bond but also gives them ownership of the environment they’ll be working in all year long.
Download the lesson plan today and set your yearbook staff up for success from the very start.
Want help building staff culture or reaching your program goals? Connect with your Walsworth Yearbooks Sales Representative for tools, resources and guidance tailored to your needs.
