Yearbook Elective Class

Letter Grade Descriptors & A Few Reminders

Letter Grade Descriptors

A

1. Meet all deadlines without any reminders;

2. Make sure that all events in charge of are covered;

3. Produce very creative spreads;

4. Do all assignments excellently;

5. Show a lot of commitment and dedication: set yearbook as your priority (or at least one of your priorities);

6. Master all the rules of design, copy writing, photography and photo editing that we have studied (based on “Yearbook Fundamentals,” “Your Curriculum,” and “Yearbook Must Dos”);

7. Maintain an excellent behavior/participation and a positive/professional attitude at all time;

8. Always stay on task during class time, show initiative, and be proactive;

9. Fulfill more than the required number of after school hours. If you miss class hours, cover, the following school day, all that was done during your absence;

10. Maintain your Idea Book and constantly include in it new ideas for yearbook.

B

1. Meet all deadlines with very few reminders;

2. Make sure that all events in charge of are covered;

3. Produce creative spreads;

4. Do all assignments very well;

5. Show a lot of commitment and dedication;

6. Apply all the rules of design, copy writing, photography and photo editing that we have studied (based on “Yearbook Fundamentals,” “Your Curriculum,” and “Yearbook Must Dos”);

7. Maintain a very good behavior/participation and a positive/professional attitude at all time;

8. Always stay on task during class time, show initiative, and be proactive;

9. Fulfill the required number of after school hours. If you miss class hours, cover, the following school day, most of was done during your absence;

10. Maintain your Idea Book and constantly include in it new ideas for yearbook.

C

1. Meet all deadlines with a few reminders;

2. Make sure that most events in charge of are covered;

3. Produce good spreads;

4. Do all assignments as required;

5. Show commitment and dedication;

6. Apply most of the rules of design, copy writing, photography and photo editing that we have studied (based on “Yearbook Fundamentals,” “Your Curriculum,” and “Yearbook Must Dos”);

7. Maintain a good behavior/participation and a positive/professional attitude at all time;

8. Stay on task during class time and show initiative.

9. If you miss class hours, cover what was done during your absence;

10. Maintain your Idea Book and include in it new ideas for yearbook.

D

1. Meet most deadlines;

2. Make sure that some events in charge of are covered;

3. Produce acceptable spreads;

4. Do most assignments;

5. Show some kind of commitment;

6. Apply some of the rules of design, copy writing, photography and photo editing that we have studied (based on “Yearbook Fundamentals,” “Your Curriculum,” and “Yearbook Must Dos”);

7. Maintain an acceptable behavior/participation and a positive/professional attitude most of the time;

8. Stay on task during class time;

9. Try to maintain your Idea Book and sometimes include in it new ideas for yearbook.

F

1. Meet no or very few deadlines;

2. Fail to make sure that all events in charge of are covered;

3. Produce mediocre spreads that do not follow the rules;

4. Do very few assignments or do them without putting in any effort;

5. Show no commitment or dedication;

6. Apply very few rules of design, copy writing, photography and photo editing that we have studied (based on “Yearbook Fundamentals,” “Your Curriculum,” and “Yearbook Must Dos”);

7. Maintain a good behavior/participation and a positive/professional attitude some of the time or at no time;

8. Stay on task very little during class time;

9. Make no effort to maintain your Idea Book.

Description and Aims of the Course:

Yearbook is a challenging course in which students have the unique opportunity to write a book, prepare a publication for printing, run a business, and record history. This course is designed to provide students the opportunity to work with advanced technology, strengthen their analytical and problem-solving skills, improve their communication skills, and manage tremendous responsibility.

Students will plan and apply proper journalistic skills to publish a yearbook for the middle and high schools. All students in this course spend a great deal of time on independent study. Students must be passionate about yearbook in order for them to be able to do a good job and to endure all the hardships that yearbook production entails. They need to be committed, dependable, self-motivated, ethical, discreet, and careful. They must be able to cooperate with each other in an unbiased and unprejudiced manner. They must be able to treat and view the administration, faculty, staff, and student body in an unbiased and unprejudiced manner. A great deal of information must be covered in a short period of time. It is very important that all students in this course be willing to work hard and use time wisely.

Required Readings:

¨ Scholastic Yearbook Fundamentals, 3rd Edition (Fiftieth Anniversary Edition), CSPA, 1999

¨ Herff Jones’s “Your Curriculum”

¨ + Yearbook Must Dos

Materials needed: Students will need to have with them in class

¨ Their required readings

¨ Their notes, assignment sheets, and completed assignments

¨ A Calendar—they will need the calendar to keep track of deadlines, events they are responsible for covering, and other Yearbook commitments!

¨ Something to write with! A No. 2 pencil or a pen with blue or black ink

¨ Closable folders to keep photos, interviews, articles written, etc.;

¨ A USB (to be specifically used for this class).

¨ Idea Book (coverage ideas, design ideas, theme, modules ideas, quotes, etc.): every student is required to keep an idea book with them at all time in order to write in it all the ideas they get for the yearbook.

Among the Class Requirements:

1. Demonstrate positive and cooperative attitudes toward each other and others in the school and community. This includes demonstrating a willingness to do more that just what is required of you. You must be willing to be a team player and help others when your work is done. A positive attitude can make everything easier for everyone in the classroom (P.A.C.E.);

2. Participate actively during each class and always produce your best work;

3. While individual/independent work is necessary, working as a team member is essential; you have to be accountable and responsible to your partners and the staff with deadlines and commitments. You must able to work under pressure and meet deadlines;

4. You MUST adhere to Scholastic Yearbook rules and regulations;

5. You need to work in all areas needed: design, layout, word processing, photography proofreading, and editing, interviewing; conduct all interviews in person, unless otherwise approved;

6. Attendance to outside events (games, lectures, dances, plays, etc.) to cover assigned stories is mandatory;

7. Complete your ad sales on time and meet their quotas. You must handle all paperwork and ad materials correctly and carefully;

8. You are expected to do whatever it takes to get your jobs done correctly, completely and on time. WE WILL NEVER MISS A DEADLINE. Staffers must often work before and/or after school (late nights if necessary), lunch time, free class periods and weekends to cover events and make deadlines;

9. If you are absent it is your responsibility to be sure that needed material or assignments you have due that day reaches the publication room that day. Any missing items slow down the work of the publication and will affect your grade. Avoid scheduling non-emergency appointments during class time or during deadline work sessions.

10. If you have accepted an assignment and then find you cannot make it, you must make arrangements for someone else to cover the assignment. You must also call the adviser and let him/her know of the arrangement. If you cannot make a work session because of a practice or meeting, I expect you to come in before school, after school, during lunch or during off periods.

11. The yearbook staff may be required to get information, take photographs, conduct interviews, and attend various events throughout the school day. When yearbook staff members are on assignment in the school they should always have an official yearbook pass with them, sign out of class, only perform the necessary yearbook work, and report back to class as soon as possible before the period ends. Students may not leave the school building at any time without special permission from the adviser. Anyone who does not follow the rules for yearbook work outside of class will lose the privilege for the entire school year;

12. In the event that it is necessary for you to perform out-of-class assignments, you are expected to conduct yourself in a responsible and professional manner.

13. If it becomes apparent that you are unable to function as a productive member of the staff or miss deadlines or other assignments, you will fail the course.

14. Assignments must be quality work and will not be accepted unless approved by the editors and adviser. The work will be revised until it meets these qualities and technique standards.

15. Deadlines are established and must be met. If a student misses a deadline, the student puts the entire production behind schedule in the plant which directly affects when the yearbook is delivered. So if a student does not meet the deadline, a failing grade will be given for that quarter. If a mini-deadline is missed, the grade will be lowered by one letter grade. Make the deadlines with no excuses.

16. If another student has to finish a student’s spread because of incompetence or attitude, that student will receive a failing grade for the quarter in which it occurred.

17. You are expected to stay after school and work until the job is completed even if the computer loses your work through no fault of your own. You must still stay after and redo your spread.

18. You are expected to file yourself the photos you take and provide, inside the folder, all the required information regarding the event that you covered.

Student Contract (reminder of one item)
I understand that, as a member of the staff, I will be responsible for working after school, early dismissals, weekends, and during school vacations if necessary to meet my deadline obligations.