I thought that I would go for something relaxing for my goal here – which was to say yes to the question my principal posed – design your first yearbook; from top to bottom, the whole thing – and then some. A bit of context may help describe the learning curve required here, for starters, I come from a culture where yearbooks don’t exist, I have never designed one before, and I saw my first yearbook just before Christmas. So perhaps I have a little bit of work to do…
I have already had a few conversations with some colleagues about this seemingly insurmountable task. Some have been supportive, and others are trying to be – they aren’t there yet 😊. But here’s the thing – even though I have very little experience in this field, I do have some website design experience, I love designing and I really like to learn new things. I also believe that I possess a Growth mindset – thanks Carol Dweck, and I am a keen believer in the 4-stages of learning, of which I am currently somewhere between the conscious incompetence/competence phase.
When You Put Your Mind To It…
And isn’t is what learning is all about? Learning what we thought we couldn’t – and then maybe passing on that learning, and approach to learning, to our students? Teaching our students to grow beyond their expectations, guiding them to achieve things they thought they previously couldn’t. Also, as the deadline for the yearbook is approaching rather quickly it has become a matter of urgency (see Chris Lonsdale’s talk on language learning – particularly the bear reference) to pay attention to what needs to be done, and to apply new knowledge, skills, and understanding quickly. As Doc Brown, from Back to the Future, said “if you put your mind to it you can accomplish anything”.
Make it Happen Davey
| Task No. | Description | Possible PLNs | Time Frame |
| 1 | Research and decide on 3rd party software. Meet with the editorial team to agree on ways forward including page quantity, and overall theme. | Previous yearbook designer. | Completed by 20th February 2019 |
| 2 | Review old school yearbooks (and other schools too) and use this information to create a yearbook ladder – i.e. page content, themes, pics, who will be responsible for each section. | Other school’s yearbook designers | Completed by 20th February 2019 |
| 3 | Create a student roster, choose a theme, upload text photos, and create a test page – run through with a colleague and get feedback for improvements. Show the completed test page to other stakeholders before asking for them to start their pages. | Other teachers/colleagues will be working on different sections within the book. | Completed by 1st March 2019 |
| 4 | Upload the remaining photos and ask colleagues to start tagging these. | Marketing department | Completed by 1st March 2019 |
| 5 | Start collecting photos for chosen topics in the yearbook. Also start collecting quotes and blurbs for the main topics, before delegating them to page owners. | TBC | Completed by 30th March – I know past the end of course 1 |
| 6 (next year) | Seek feedback from students and families about what they would like to see in the Yearbook. Create Yearbook after-school club/committee. Create legacy documents, and folder structure. | Students and families | Next Year! |
Research Skills Applied
After reading this blog post from graduate student Seyi Ogunlande (who may have asked herself to “design your first yearbook”). I felt humbled by her comments about the fact that most of her classmates “came from different parts of the globe” and that she thought it would be “great to make something that included a bit of everyone.”. Woah, what a statement! Seyi, unbeknownst to her, has inspired this very green yearbook editor to go the extra mile (just like my predecessor) and create something special that our students and their families can cherish for years to come.
I also read a few other blogs on yearbook designs and sponged a few of their tips, such as “Make a Page a Week” from Becky Higgins’ blog; although given my time frame this needs to be 1.9 pages a day for the next 58 days. Of course, there are copious amounts of yearbooks out there to investigate, not to mention the somewhat biased advice from the various yearbook providers* to read through; a pinch of salt is required when taking onboard advice; after all, they want you to use their product.
When it comes to proofing, yes I know this is a long way off, I like the 5 steps from image seven on their article titled school marketing news, particularly the bit about using a ruler when reading each line – so old school. Again, another good bit of advice for next year is to set up a Yearbook after-school club, at the beginning of the 2019/20 year. Don’t ask me my opinion on whether I think a yearbook should be printed or digital (it’s digital), but Beta Boston makes a detailed comparison of the two, saying that ditching yearbooks have worked for some universities, like The University of Virginia’s Corks and Curls yearbook for example, whereas sales for the printed MIT’s Technique yearbook have remained steady. I am for the inclusion of some techy bits, like QR codes, which I will link to some Padlet pages for different events throughout the year. Once scanned, users will be taken to a web page containing an abundance of pictures – and video, and audio. I may even add a little augmented reality to spice up the interactivity.
*Pictavo, Blurb, Picaboo, Treering, Bookbaby
Moving Forwards
Since writing this blog post I have gone and researched Typography, and in turn, passed on my new knowledge to Grade 6 students; they are currently creating a digital book for an Individuals and Societies unit using Book Creator. And thus the circle of learning continues, now for that next yearbook page…
Design Your First Yearbook – Job Done
Update 9th May – I finally completed the yearbook with 2 days to spare. Upon reflection, I somewhat underestimated how much work was involved. I was also happy that I hit one of my learning goals of global collaborator, after working with several staff and students in school, Pictavo and publisher help desks, and pestering friends and colleagues back home. And I ended up using remove.bg for some pixel removing magic.
So, if anyone asks you to design your first yearbook. Think twice, think carefully, and think about the lost hours of sleep and increased stress levels that you will meet with. But also think that it is an awesome opportunity to create something special for your community.