YEARBOOKS@theBEACH

Theme sessions are required for all attendees (except new staffers and photographers who choose those live courses). Starting with the verbal concept, we'll show you examples and ways to pitch your theme idea. Next, we'll tackle the opening copy. Putting down specifics of how you will tell your school's and students' unique stories will bring focus to the development of your book. Next, we'll talk coverage, and you’ll create the ladder, driven by your theme, to enhance student coverage. Finally we'll help you develop unifying visual elements to design the book around. These presentations are immediately followed by a coaching session so students can ask questions, discuss options and have an action plan for the day’s tasks. There is another 30-minute coaching session during the day to help keep your staff on track and to make sure you get lots of feedback as you work toward creating your theme packet.

Don't just be in yearbook class or on the staff. As a new staffer, you can build the skills necessary to make the decisions that matter and make choices that impact pages. We will design whole pages/layouts, build engaging mods and select and edit the right photos to help you tell the whole story with your spread.

This course will cover the camera’s basic functions (ISO, aperture, shutter speed), along with rules of composition and lighting. Most important, you will learn the techniques that will allow you to photograph better images—from action photos to group shots to environmental portraits to taking quality photos with your phone—with a minimum of post-processing. Students will learn additional camera settings (i.e. metering modes, AF modes, camera compensation), photo shoot planning and management, working with challenging light situations and photographic storytelling.  Options for workflow and photo management will be presented.

We've divided yearbook into specialized areas and matched a playlist of pre-recorded sessions that will walk you through a program of study and help you master skills. There will be assignments given along the way and live daily check-ins with one of our Workshop Staff for guidance and feedback. Lots of staff attending? Divide yourselves up among these so you can take advantage of all of our instruction options.

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Yearbook Basics (for first-year staffers not in the Intro to YBK class): terms, how to make the most of camp and

     the camp curriculum, designing a spread, storytelling, eDesign

Advanced Refresh: experienced staffers looking for an overall refresh on design, writing, coverage & eDesign

Storytelling: interviewing, ways to tell a story, headlines, mods, captions, coverage, profiles, getting quotes

Design: designing a spread, mods, modes of coverage, consistent elements, typography, fonts, designing

     headlines, defining and incorporating thematic elements

Photography (for the staffers not in the Photojournalism class): composition/exposure, your equipment, settings, 

     storytelling,  portraits, sports photography, cropping, workflow

Marketing/Sales: your audience, goals, calendaring a plan, selling books and ads, on-line presence, social 

      media, marketing events, Canva, video and live events

Theme: If you want even more help beyond your coaching sessions, we have two tracks for those coming 

      to camp with a theme and those not yet there. Essentials, Verbal, Visual, Advancing your theme through 

      coverage and design.

Leadership: starting strong, storytelling in your book, building your staff culture, teaching your staff

Advisers: making yearbook work for you, grading, motivation, deadlines, skill building, trends, HJ tools

Yearbook classes on different subjects to help you master any skill you might need to be a yearbook rockstar — think Yearbook Ted Talk. Some that we have planned are designing a layout, photo composition, interviewing, secondary coverage, social media, cool mod designs, using the new HTML eDesign, motivating your staff, hybrid yearbooks, style imitation, photo exposure, rethinking the portrait section.

Here's a quick way to dive into a specific task that yearbookers should know about. We'll give you the facts fast. Then we'll assign a task to help you practice. Then we'll ask you to come back and talk to the instructor to get feedback and see more ideas. Some that we have planned: creating paragraph/character styles, shooting your levels, writing attention-grabbing leads, getting quotes from all students, finding purpose, type anatomy, Send & Sell in eDesign, taking headshots.

Grab your favorite coffee beverage and join Lindsay (and her workshop staff friends) to discuss those things advisers are most concerned about: organizing class structure, building the ladder, turning your yearbook staff into a team, grading, planning deadlines.

One of the best ways to learn is to hear how others do it. We'll set up nightly discussions on topics related to leadership, organization, teaching, sales and social media, mostly for editors and advisers. These are optional. Attend if you have time and interest.

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Saturday: Let's remember what yearbook is

Sunday: Telling stories that matter

Monday: It's a tradition...we have fun

Tuesday: Teaching your staff all the things

Yes, yearbook is fun. It is hard work. And it can be a launching pad for a career. We'll bring some professionals who make journalism their career, some of whom started on yearbook staffs. These are optional, but what a great way to see how yearbook skills translate into the real world. We know they'll inspire you.

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Saturday: TBA...a journalist/writer

Sunday: Maddie Malhotra, Photojournalist for the Boston Red Socks, former yearbooker/EIC at Sierra Middle School and Chaparral High School, Colorado

Monday: Priscilla Chong, graphic designer, yearbooker/EIC at Oak Avenue Intermediate and Temple City High School, California