Yearbook Essentials: How to Write & Arrange a School Yearbook

When it comes to collating the vast array of precious memories that are created throughout the school year, crafting a ripper yearbook is the perfect way to pass these memories on and keep them forever. 

Quite simply, a yearbook is a printed and bound book that consists of a collection of photos, people, events and stories from throughout the school year, celebrating and commemorating the connective forces of your school community. It’s common for secondary schools to create a yearbook at the end of each school year so that the students - and their parents - can take a parcel of memories away with them as they leave the year behind. However, it’s becoming more common to see yearbooks being made in primary schools now, too. After all, nothing beats receiving a physical book that captures an array of significant moments, no matter what year of school you’re in. Yearbooks aren’t only a way to look back on the school year in the immediate aftermath of it, they’re also a way to reflect back on memories in the many years to come. 

Usually, a committee of school staff and students will volunteer to create the school’s yearbook. This might include older students, students in leadership roles and teachers with an interest in creativity and production. There is, of course, plenty of help to be found at Foliofox in creating the perfect year book for your school, so there’s no need to stress if you’re feeling a little lost in the process. If you’re wanting to create your own yearbook, you’ve come to the right place. Below, we take a good look at everything to do with yearbooks, from what goes into a yearbook to laying out the yearbook so it’s ready for printing.

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What You Should Include in a Yearbook

There are no hard or fast rules about what goes into a yearbook. At the end of the day, the content, look, theme and story is completely up to you! We know that the endless options can be sometimes daunting though, especially if this is your first time creating a yearbook. So, let’s explore the possibilities of what could go inside yours. 

When it comes to how you choose to structure your yearbook, the best way to organise it is by dedicating each page to a different segment of the school. For example, each year level would have their own page, as well as each club or sport. School festivals, sports carnivals and charity days are like goldmines for the yearbook as large segments of the school will be gathered in the one place - maybe even dressed in costumes or matching colours - making it easy and interesting to photograph a whole array of students and staff. Once you’ve worked out which segments - or chapters - that will be included, you can write up a contents page. Having a contents page handy can be a helpful way to tick off each chapter as it is completed, like a checklist. 

How to Write for Your Yearbook

The writing in a yearbook doesn’t have to be Pulitzer Prize-winning poetry - realistically, the writing should be accessible, short, and brimming with sentiment. After all, a yearbook is a way to look back on the memories you’ve made throughout the year and keep them close to you for years to come. What makes a yearbook interesting, emotional, funny or memorable is the memories shared of the people who lived them.

Start with the heading for each yearbook chapter - it could be “Summer Swimming Carnival” or “Ms Smith’s Year 12 Class”, or whatever you like. After all, this is a place to get creative! From there, a short, snappy sentence summary should provide the important information - who was there, when it was, why it happened. After that, if you’re wanting to include some articles or features, writing about a specific memory or goal that was achieved is a good way to balance both information and emotional resonance. The tone that you should use when writing your yearbook should be friendly, energised and happy - exactly how the memory felt when it happened. The focus of a yearbook is on memories, so if you ever feel stuck or you want to inject a dose of creativity onto the page, write about why this is a memory you want to last in the minds of the people who will read about it. At the end of the day, the focus of a yearbook is predominantly on the photos, so less writing is more!

How to Lay Out a Yearbook

In recent years, there has been an upward trend of yearbook layouts that hold back on the stylistic flourishes - instead opting for a clean, simple layout that puts the centre of focus on the images that fill the pages. If you’re looking for the easiest way to proceed in your yearbook making process, laying out your yearbook with an emphasis on photos is your best bet. Not only will this save you time on design and writing, but it will also allow the collection of images to speak for themselves, serving as a means to memory and nostalgia. Adding captions to your photos is a good idea - both to explain the information depicted and to grab your reader’s attention. How big your yearbook can be is completely up to you - although, as a general rule of thumb, around 1 page for every 10 students usually works best. 

The best thing about a yearbook is that it is a collection of memories and experiences that you can hold in your hands and look back on in the years to come. A yearbook is a time capsule, so to make sure that your yearbook stands the test of time, it’s important to have yours printed with permanent, archival-quality construction.

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No need to stress about that, though - we can help you out with the finest quality for everlasting memories that will stay with you long after the school year is over. To find out more about our range of options for fast, easy and modern yearbook printing, head here.

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