Top Tips to Make Creating a Yearbook Easier

After teachers have printed out their lists, their next task is to make sure spelling is correct on EVERYTHING. Spelling is IMPORTANT! Getting phone calls after the yearbook is printed and finalized complaining that Jimmy Smith’s last name is spelt “Smyth” is not a fun experience for you.

By having each teacher assist in proofreading their specific class list, you’re holding them accountable as well! Do not think you are solely responsible for an entire school’s student list… that’s crazy! Have the teachers sign and date the sheets verifying that they have checked and double checked their lists. After that, gather your editing team and start making those easy changes.

Two weeks out from the deadline is another great time to have teachers check their pages for the second or third time. It’s easy! Email teachers a PDF of their pages. It’s their last chance to check everything over before production. As before, ask them to print them out and annotate any corrections that need to be made. This is the best way to ensure that their students’ pictures match their names, their names are spelled correctly, and that there are no duplicate images on the collage page.

The other crucial thing to decide in advance and maintain throughout all of the portrait pages is, do you want the student names listed “Last name, first name” or “First name, last name?” It’s easy enough to correct if you change your mind or forget, but you do have to reset and reflow. I’m ex-military and am used to “last name, then first name.” It makes it so much easier to find a student by their last name instead of looking through a bunch of “Justins.”