Why a Yearbook is Still Important in the Digital Age

Yes, with Facebook, Instagram and the internet many think that a yearbook isn’t a necessity for students anymore. They think all their moments and excitement during the school year can be captured and looked at within a social network on a mobile device.

Yearbooks still importantWhile that is potentially true, a printed yearbook chronicles what is most relevant to students and allows them to physically have something to touch when revisiting the book in future years.

Why is a yearbook important?


    • For one, it doesn’t exclude anybody. Everyone is mentioned and no one is left out or snubbed. In contrast, if you rely on a social network and the web to showcase the school year, there is a good possibility sections, stories and photos can get deleted. This could lead to tension between students and perhaps lead to a memory that only few will want to remember instead of the entire class.

    • Yearbooks are permanent keepsakes. Just like a wedding band and a piece of fine china, a yearbook will last forever. You will have the ability to go back to it and reminisce with future generations including your own children and grandchildren. In contrast, as quick as technology evolves, web-based sites may change their format or go out of business tomorrow and all of your memories could potentially be gone. A printed yearbook guarantees these memories will last forever!

While technology and trends change, good traditional storytelling never goes out of style and that is exactly what a yearbook is. Students will flip through the printed pages of their yearbooks, ask friends and teachers for their autographs and to share stories. Something that just isn’t the same on a mobile phone, tablet or computer.

Creating a Yearbook Without a Big Team or Committee

Four businesspeople in office space looking at computer smilingA yearbook is a keepsake that every student will cherish for the rest of his or her life. That is why it is important that a lot of thought and teamwork is put in for making it great.

Unfortunately though, not every school has a volunteer yearbook committee to design and create the yearbook. It may fall on one or two advisors who most likely have other responsibilities at the school as well.

These dedicated individuals shouldn’t feel overwhelmed and discouraged. A great, memorable and professional yearbook can still be created with a small staff. Here’s what to do:

  • It’s okay to ask for help, even if it’s just temporary. Perhaps a teacher with graphic design skills or students in study hall can “pinch hit” and provide a temporary helping hand. Perhaps you can entice students to help out if in return they can get some kind of extra credit in one of their classes.

  • Create a plan early and stick to it. Even if new events and ideas surface remember you are a small crew and you should stick with your original plan. Also do the best you can in allowing for extra time to resolve unforeseen issues. By planning ahead for the unexpected can help prevent a major issue down the road.

  • Utilize YearbookLife as your “yearbook committee.” YearbookLife makes the entire yearbook process simple and seamless.  This one-stop-shop offers design ideas, yearbook software and affordable prices so you get all the compliments and appreciation.

Remind yourself that a simple yearbook is better than no yearbook at all and only do the best you can!

Determining Your School Yearbook Title

Yellow book isolated on white, black frame for title on the spinWhile the theme and content make up the most important parts of the class yearbook, a title is still very important. That is because in many instances the book won’t be referred to as the class yearbook but by its title.

So what makes for a good title? Here are some ideas:

  • One title idea that will always work is an inspirational type of title.  Perhaps “Taking The Lead” or “Only The Beginning”. Both of these provide a sense not of ending one chapter but rather starting a new one.

  • A title based off the theme of the book is also a great idea. If your theme were current events perhaps you would want to go with a title like a newspaper such as the “(name of school) Times”. The yearbook is meant to capture the events that went on during the school year. This makes this type of title very appropriate.

  • Utilizing your school mascot is also a great direction to go in for your yearbook title. For example, play off the word Roar if your mascot is a tiger or lion. If your school mascot is the wolves you could play off the word Howl.

  • If the class had a theme song or chant, a yearbook may relate well if its title includes words from that music. Perhaps “This Is How We Do It.” Or “Once Upon A Time.”

If none of these suggestions work you can always look back at past yearbooks from your school and simply repeat it’s name and just update the year and colors.

Your yearbook title will stay with each of its recipients for generations to come. By making it memorable will make the book that much better.

Yearbook Writing Assignments for Students

A major part to the body of the class yearbook is writing stories. These stories are important as they first-handily talk about experiences and memories that occurred during the class’s graduation year.

Depositphotos_25732069_originalUnfortunately though, not every student is a chatterbox and getting them to share these first-hand experiences can be challenging. When this occurs, a yearbook committee member should coach these particular students on what to write about. Here are some example ideas:

Remember When… This is a great gateway to get a memorable story from students. Maybe, ask them to discuss where they were and whom they were with during a holiday break or how they reacted when they received their first college acceptance letter. These are great stories that the entire class would love to read, both today and for years to come.

Which Faculty Member Inspired You Most During Your Time In School and Why? Choosing a name will be easy for a student to provide. The reason why they chose that individual will be unique though. Maybe this teacher or faculty member assisted them on passing a certain class or went the extra level for them outside the classroom.

Which current event during your graduation year did you enjoy most? This is another open-ended question that will get a slew of different responses. Maybe it was something school related such as winning the state championship in basketball or being a lead character in the class play. Maybe though, it was a family member coming back from a tour of active duty to spend the holidays with you and the rest of the family.

Yearbook writing assignments shouldn’t make students feel like they are taking an exam. They should be fun and give students the true ability to express themselves. This in-turn will provide the best yearbook content that everyone can enjoy for generations!

Tips for Conducting Great Interviews for a Yearbook

A major part of a class yearbook is the interview section. It is here where the yearbook committee selects various students, perhaps the valedictorian or class president, and asks them a series of questions that will then be published in the yearbook.

conducting an interviewAs a yearbook committee member, this is a very important job as it is their responsibility not only to ask the right questions, but also to transcribe the interview properly. This is so they don’t have the potential of being misinterpreted.

Before you conduct the interview, here are a few tips on how make it not only go smooth and seamless:

  • Be upbeat and encouraging. Not every person you interview will have a slew of stuff to talk about. Keep an open mind when going into the interview and try to get the information to come out of the interviewee naturally without having to pull it from them. If you can’t get the right information out of them at first, it is okay to move on to another topic and perhaps even go back to it later.

  • Be prepared. As the interviewer, come prepared with a list of questions ahead of time. You can get inspiration from a number of sources including previous yearbooks. Concentrate on core topics that you can than expand upon.

  • Ask narrower questions at first. These questions require yes and no answers and just brief responses. This will help break the ice and hopefully lead to more expanded, detailed answers as you move forward with the interview.

    • Don’t be afraid of asking “What If…” questions. This will hopefully encourage the interviewee to utilize some thought and uniqueness when giving their answers as well as make the responses interesting.

School yearbook interviews are a great way to include first-hand experiences of students during their graduating year. Their answers will for sure be remembered for generations to come.