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4 ways to shake up your end-of-year yearbook party
As the end of the school year approaches and yearbooks get delivered, it’s the perfect time to throw a yearbook party. What better way to remember the year than to go through your yearbook and host a signing party?! We know when it comes to throwing a school party that everyone just thinks of one thing – pizza – but yours can be so much more. A class party should be about celebrating and making memories, not just eating food (to be honest food is always the first thing that pops into my mind, but I digress).
As this year has been so different, we wanted to make sure you had some ideas on how to celebrate the memories made in the yearbook, whether you were in school or virtual, and for students who bought a yearbook or not. If this year taught us anything, it's that you have to find the time to be present and live for the moment - celebrate with one another. Social distancing can, in fact, be social!
Here are a few in-school party ideas:
Throw a Blast From the Past Party
As a parent volunteer or teacher, there are a lot of ways you can take your students back in time. So when you’re ready to throw your yearbook party, set the scene by printing out some fun pictures you’ve taken throughout the year and hang them around the room. Or, if you’ve kept any previous party decor from other celebrations like Halloween or pie day, you can create themes throughout the room to reflect the year that has passed. Decorating the room with old photos and decorations is a great way to remind your students of all the good times and bonus, you get to recycle old projects, while keeping party expenses down!
To liven up the party and get the students excited, have them bring in their favorite projects of the year to reminisce on all the great things they’ve learned. This party will encompass all the memories from the yearbook, the decorations, and even their learning experiences. While all the fun is happening, students can sign yearbooks and share something nice about each project they brought in.
If you can, really blast to the past by bringing each student in fake feather quill pens for them to sign each other’s yearbook.
Host Pop-Con with Popcorn
A fun way to throw a party in the classroom is to get students involved in a craft and whether they bought a yearbook or not, throwing a yearbook party is about celebrating memories and making more. A similar craft to a yearbook that elementary students can make is a comic strip! Give each student some time to go through the yearbook and then celebrate by letting them create their own mini-book or comic strip of their favorite school-year memory. Letting them create this craft on their own will help them develop mentally, socially, and emotionally.
And everyone loves a good play on words, so add some popcorn for everyone to enjoy while they make their Pop-Con comics! Even if you still have to be socially distant, separate the popcorn in individual cups or baggies. After everyone has enjoyed their popcorn and drawn their comic, have them go around the party and sign their yearbooks (or comic strips) as they chat about all the good times. This party gives all the students an additional souvenir of the year and more fond memories of their classmates.
Make a Magnet Memory
If you work in the classroom, you know students love to bring something home to show off. This yearbook party, which involves making a mini book magnet, creates another memento for students to bring home celebrating their year – just like the yearbook. You’ll need some more supplies for this craft including a hot glue gun and magnets. Similar to the last craft, start your party off by letting the students explore the yearbook to find what memory they want to recreate. Provide 3x4” cardstock paper for students to fold and draw pictures of recess, lunch time, masks or anything else that sparks excitement.
After the students get their time to cut out and color a little mini book, let them sign their mini yearbook and send them around with their own pens to sign everyone else's real-sized yearbook. Make sure everyone turns in their drawing, so you can glue the magnets on and return their crafts before summer break.
This party ensures all students have a memento for the year!
For those celebrating the end of the year virtually, here are a few remote party ideas:
Throw a Yearbook Reveal Party
When you’re celebrating school milestones virtually, it can be tricky. But a fun way to experience the yearbook is to reveal it! Using Zoom or another platform, take your students through each page of the yearbook, almost as if you are reading a story aloud. Another way to liven a yearbook reveal party is to have a surprise guest come in to share a few pages. You could use someone like the principal or another teacher as long as your school’s guidelines permit.
Give the students time to see each page, comment on its contents and share excitement about the inclusivity of themselves and their classmates, which will likely be the pages they love most. If you throw any kind of contest for your students’ drawing to be on, give them a shoutout. Some yearbook companies even have features that allow you to sign yearbooks digitally, which is definitely a perk with schools having to do many things virtually this past year.
This year was a challenging one that resulted in many unique moments for students. Because of this, the yearbook will be looked at for many years to come. Take time to celebrate the fact you and your students have made it! Congrats Students, teachers, and parents... you did it!
Selling yearbook ads? Read this first.
If you’re considering whether selling yearbook ads is right for your staff, you’re probably looking to take your team to the next level. Of course, it might also mean you’re hoping to satisfy a financial obligation to your yearbook publisher.
Yearbook ad sales can represent a fantastic learning opportunity. This process can empower your students with real-world skills, from pitching to potential clients to designing captivating advertisements. And the proceeds that come from selling ads to parents and local businesses can help offset or even eliminate the cost of many wish-list items.
However, if ad sales are necessary to offset yearbook debt instead of a way to benefit your program, Treering can help.
Define Your Goal
Before you think about ad sales, ask yourself: what’s our objective? Generally speaking, schools sell yearbook ads for one of four reasons:
- To teach business skills (sales, advertising, negotiation, and more)
- To purchase new equipment
- To help students pursue related learning opportunities
- To pay back existing yearbook debt
If your aim aligns with the first three, congratulations! Purchasing hardware and software that, in your staff's well-trained hands, will enhance your program for years to come is a fantastic achievement. And being able to do so self-sufficiently is even better! If you find yourself here due to the last reason, however, read on.
Cultivate Favorable Terms
There are many reasons your yearbook organization could be in debt. Perhaps you bought too many books last year (tip: not every company requires a minimum order quantity). Maybe unexpected charges surfaced on your final invoice or your per-book price seems high. Regardless, if ad revenue is solely meant to cover existing debt, it's a signal to reassess terms with your publisher.
The solution? Negotiate more advantageous terms. Open communication with your publisher can often lead to mutually beneficial solutions. Many publishers are willing to collaborate to foster goodwill and ensure continued revenue.
If renegotiation proves challenging, consider evaluating other publishers. Look for a partner that offers flexible terms, never requires contracts or minimum purchase requirements, provides inclusive per-book pricing without hidden fees, and offers school-friendly ways to raise funds.
Selling Yearbook Ads: the Potential of Your Program
Your yearbook has the potential to not only capture memories but also generate revenue for your program. If you find it becoming a financial burden instead, it's a cue to reassess your strategy. Selling yearbook ads should be a positive venture, enhancing your students' skills and contributing to the success of your yearbook program. As you embark on this journey, keep the focus on empowerment, learning, and the enduring impact your yearbook can have on your school community.
Make your yearbook signing party rock with a playlist
Outside of yearbooks, the only thing you might possibly need to throw a great yearbook signing party is a solid playlist. Science tells us that music elevates our moods and we all know the right playlist elevates our moods. When it comes to a yearbook signing party, incorporating the right tunes can evoke nostalgia—we all have flashbacks when certain songs play in the car. ("Motownphilly" gets me every time.) Let's create that same musical magic for yearbook memories.
Play Now: A Ready-Made Yearbook Playlist
We curated a feel-good, classroom-appropriate playlist for your singing party. They’re all available on Spotify, and you can get them right from this blog post.
How To Create My Own Playlist
You know your students best. If lines like "The highs and the lows, yes and the no's; Only gonna make you strong; Yeah, bruh" don't resonate with your students, I've got nothing for you create your own. All jokes aside, build your custom yearbook signing party playlist to reflect your school, your students, and the vibe you’re trying to create. Here are a few tips
- Select songs with positive messages.
- Use your yearbook theme as a guide.
- Avoid radio edits/clean versions. Our kids know what's being bleeped out and will fill in the blank.
- For a throwback vibe, ask teachers for their "senior song."
Adding music is an easy—and cheap—way to put a polished touch on a fun event.
Four yearbook marketing ideas backed by psychology, no degree required
Yearbook Marketing Ideas Backed By Psychology #1: Ask for help.
- Psychology Principle At Play: The Ben Franklin Effect
- Fancy Definition: “You grow to like people for whom you do nice things.”
Yearbook Marketing Ideas Backed By Psychology #2: Advertise how many students have bought the yearbook.
- Psychology Principle At Play: Informational Social Influence
- Fancy Definition: “You look to the behaviors of others who are also in the same or similar situation to see how they behave.”
Yearbook Marketing Ideas Backed By Psychology #3: Keep the advertisements coming.
- Psychology Principle At Play: Mere Exposure Effect
- Fancy Definition: “The more often something is presented to people, the more they tend to like it.”
Yearbook Marketing Ideas Backed By Psychology #4: Invite everyone to your yearbook signing party.
- Psychology Principle At Play: Fear of Missing Out
- Fancy Definition: “Pervasive apprehension that others might be having rewarding experiences from which one is absent.”
Selling yearbook ads? Try these tips to make your job easier
Partnering With Your Booster Club to Up Yearbook Ad Sales
If you’ve got a booster club that’s out in the community—right now—selling ads for a program or calendar or other printed piece, don’t even finish this blog post (seriously). Call the head of the booster club immediately and ask that person if their sales team will double as your sales team. It’s a big favor to ask, we know, but the benefits are enormous for everybody. Here’s how to approach it: Since you’re lacking a sales team (or are really struggling to get your sales moving), you’ll need to outline to your booster club contact why you need the help (and the ad revenue) so badly: Are you losing money on your yearbook? Are you trying to raise enough to buy a new camera? Whatever it is, spell it out. You don’t, obviously, have much to offer in return for help. But you do have one thing: Fundraising dollars. If the money raised for you by a booster club is money you wouldn’t have otherwise gotten, it’d be totally fair to give the booster club a percentage of that money. Figure out what works for you and for the booster club, but we’d recommend something in the 10-20% range. This type of setup means businesses are only contacted once, the booster club is making a couple extra bucks for every yearbook ad sale they make, and you’re selling ads you wouldn’t have sold otherwise.Getting Other Help From Your Booster Club
Your booster club isn’t always going to be able to double as your sales team. And that’s okay. They can still help you. Here are a few more ways:- Provide introductions. A quick way to get potential advertisers is for a booster club president to introduce you to local business contacts who have been supportive towards your school’s extracurriculars in the past. Having that information will get you to the most receptive audience first—always a good way to start your sales season.
- Package ad sales. While both of your teams are out selling, propose asking a local business to support both programs at a discounted rate. Like having the booster club do your selling for you, this method reduces the amount of pavement-pounding you have to do and increases the reach of your sales efforts.
- Trade ad space. You know who would probably love an ad in your yearbook? The booster club. Give them one for free, if they’ll let you toss an ad in their program or calendar. It won’t boost your ad sales, but it might boost your yearbook sales.
Tracking Down Your School’s Booster Club
Of course, if you’re going to work with your school’s booster club volunteers, you need to know who they are. You probably already do (these folks don’t typically hide in the woodwork), but if you don’t, you can usually find them by asking your normal list of contacts. Your principal, student government adviser, athletic director, PTA president… all of these individuals are a good bet for information. If asking around doesn’t turn up any success, do a quick Google search. Using “your school name + booster club” in the search box should do the trick.Lasting Benefits of Booster Club Partnerships
You can gain a lot more than a one-time boost in yearbook ad sales by working with your school’s booster club. They key, though, is really becoming a team. A lot of booster clubs have a strong history of raising money and drumming up interest in your school. They know what works (and, maybe more importantly, what doesn’t). If they’re not ready to get their hands dirty with you, you can start by learning from their experiences. And that’s never a bad place to start.
A yearbook curriculum you'll love teaching
Creating a yearbook is no easy task. There are countless components from design and photography to storytelling and marketing. If you're teaching a class, there are documents to write and objectives to obtain. Club advisers also need a starting point. We know no two schools/classes/clubs are alike. You will find ALL the resources you need in a 100% editable format here. Our modular yearbook curriculum is flexible enough to work for any class, and even parent groups, and covers each yearbook topic. Oh, did we mention it's FREE? And CTE-aligned?
Module 1: Getting Started for the Adviser
This first module helps you as the teacher get organized and off to a great start. You'll find templates to help you customize your syllabus, grading rubrics, and so much more. You'll be ready for recruiting, parent orientation, and accreditation in a few clicks.
Module 2: Kicking Off the Year(book)
Set your students up for success. Here they will learn the importance of the yearbook, the purpose of the different roles, and how to work together as a team.
Module 3: Getting on the Same Page
The key to yearbook success is an organized plan. Your students will learn how to build a yearbook ladder, set up their photo folders, and begin assigning spreads.
Module 4: Creating a Theme From Beginning to End
Coming up with a yearbook theme is more than picking colors. Here, your students will learn the purpose of the yearbook theme and how to develop one on their own while applying it to this year's book.
Module 5: Design Makes it Real
Yearbook design is more than making a page pretty. In this module of the yearbook curriculum, students will learn the various elements of design and how to apply them consistently to their yearbook to re-enforce their theme.
Module 6: Raise Your Voice: Yearbook Storytelling
Telling the story of the year through headlines, captions, and interviews can be intimidating when working with limited space on each spread. In this module of the yearbook curriculum, students will have fun removing their fears and getting to the heart of the story.
Module 7: See the Year Through Your Favorite Lens
Level up your students' photography game. By learning some basics in exposure and composition, your yearbook photos will go from standard snapshots to professional, story-telling photographs.
Module 8: Spread the Word & Make Your Yearbook a Sell-out Success
Whether you're using your yearbook as a fundraiser or not, selling and marketing your yearbook is an important part of the yearbook process. Help your students build a marketing plan to reach their sales goals.
Module 9: Edit or Regret It
Mistakes happen to everyone. With this step-by-step checklist, your students will learn how to avoid as many as possible before sending your yearbook to print.
Using the Free Yearbook Curriculum
Like all things Treering, this yearbook curriculum is flexible. Here's how advisers and coordinators told us they use it:
- Flipped classroom: assign a reading and discuss it the next day
- I Do, You Do, We Do: student editors take a chunk of a module, model it, teach it, and then the class applies it together
- Traditional instruction: plug and play!
You know your students best!
The one set of yearbook flyers that can boost your sales by 50%
- Answer their question of “What’s in it for me?”
- Only give them enough of the answer that they’re oozing with curiosity.
- Make buying the yearbook the only way to get the rest of the answer.
(Want to make a flyer just like this? You can grab this template right here. Be sure to read on, though, because we walk you through how to handle the rest of the process.)
Maybe you’ve seen this type of flyer on Pinterest or heard about other schools using something like this. We certainly had. But what we hadn’t seen (or heard) was how well they worked.
So, we reached out to Angie Allen, the yearbook adviser at Elizabeth Lenz Elementary School in Nevada, to talk to her about this type of flyer. She’s used it for two years and, this year, this approached to her flyers boosted her sales by 50%.
What we’re going to do in the rest of the post is to tell you why these flyers work and, with the help of Angie, share the steps you can take to create them yourself.
The Science Behind Why These Yearbook Flyers Work
Before we go any further, here’s Angie on why she created the flyers: “I thought, if we told the students and their parents what pages they were on, it would feel more concrete than a ‘You’re probably in the yearbook.’ message... It works. We sold 227 yearbooks prior to the flyers going out and we ended up selling 370.” Angie’s instinct was dead on. Interestingly, though, there’s a scientific reason behind it. Think about all those headlines you see on Facebook and Twitter: “...You Won’t Believe What Happened Next” and “How I {insert amazing feat} In Just {insert ridiculously short time frame}” It’s nearly impossible not to click on those headlines, right? If they almost feel like an itch that needs to be scratched, that’s because there’s a scientific reason for that: Those headlines are creating a curiosity gap (or, if you’re being scholarly, an information gap). Here’s the curiosity gap, as illustrated by a nine-year-old on a playground: The theory behind the curiosity gap is based in psychology and goes like this: when we’re confronted with a gap in our knowledge, we feel a primal urge to close that gap—and we’re willing to take any action to do so. "Such information gaps produce the feeling of deprivation labeled curiosity," wrote George Lowenstein, the psychologist who developed the theory in the early 1990s. "The curious individual is motivated to obtain the missing information to reduce or eliminate the feeling of deprivation." More recently, a study has shown that we’re most curious when we know a little about a subject, but not too much. In other words, something’s been done to raise our level of curiosity. So, how does all this science relate to your yearbook flyers? You can use your flyers to create that curiosity gap.How to Make Yearbook Flyers That Create a Curiosity Gap
Angie’s flyers did just that. They answered the “What’s in it for me?” question by telling the student how many times he or she was in the yearbook and where he or she appeared. The trick is the second part of the flyer (where the photos are in the book), because, at that point, you’ve given the person everything but the photo. This is where the curiosity kicks in. (Real world example for you: Have you ever had a friend say, “Oh, my gosh! You have to see this photo I have of you. It’s so funny!” Piques your interest, right? This is the equivalent of that.) So, how did Angie do it? We asked her about that, and she shared her tips.- Tag your photos- This is prep work, and it might sound like a lot of work, but it’s not too bad if you stay on top of it. The trick is finding someone who knows all the students at your school. (Angie was able to work with her school’s librarian to identify all the students she didn’t know.) Also, tagging photos makes life a lot easier in the end. You can automatically create index pages off that data and make sure you’re including every student a minimum number of times.
- Create Lists- To start work on the actual flyers, Angie created a list of students who hadn’t purchased a book. She then used that list to check against her index and make sure she had candid photos of those students in the yearbook. (Angie also did the same for students who already purchased a yearbook.)
- Take Extra Photos- By cross-checking a student’s name against the number of times he or she appeared in the book, Angie discovered that some students were underrepresented in the first draft. So, she went to school and specifically sought out pictures of those students to include in the yearbook.
- Fill out & Distribute Flyers- After she added her extra photos to the yearbook, Angie sat down with her flyer template (which is really similar to this free one you can grab from us!) and filled out the information found on her index. Each flyer had a student’s name, the pages on which he or she appeared, and instructions on how to buy the yearbook. Then, she distributed the flyers to each student who hadn’t bought a yearbook.
Double your donations 2022
In honor of the season of giving, Treering will match up to five yearbook donations per school account. From November 29 through December 31, one community book donation equals one Treering book donation. Editors can reassign these books to teachers, promoting students, the principal, or students in need.
How the Donation Match Works
- Enable the Book Donation option on the dashboard
- Let your campus community know ’tis the season to share the (yearbook) love
- Re-assign the yearbooks so recipients can customize or order non-custom books to hand out
This promotion ends at 11:59 pm PST on December 31, 2022. Matched yearbooks will automatically be added to your account by January 30, 2023.
How to Get the Word Out
Think about how your school communicates: social media, TalkingPoints, or email. One of the best ways to share this information with your school community is to use our email notifications which are found in the promote section of the application.
Download and share these images to share on social.
The Fine Print
- Promotion ends at 11:59 pm PST on December 31, 2022.
- Matched yearbooks will automatically be added to your account by January 30, 2023.
- Donations may not be combined with any other promotions.
- Donated yearbooks cannot exist on ship-to-home, invoiced, or PO orders. Credit card or PayPal orders only.
- Ordering donation books will not be available for After Deadline Orders.