Category: Yearbooks

A yearbook unlike any other

6/20/2014

"My kids have been playing with their yearbook all weekend!" This is a quote from a parent email I received after passing out our school yearbooks. In our 56 page book, we managed to add bonus pictures and videos to 40 pages. Each homeroom has a class picture on it, resource classes each have a video highlighting their experiences, sports pages have slideshows, and groups such as band have videos from their performances at Christmas or spring concerts.

Finally, the yearbook can be a way to truly chronicle the year's events. Adding video memories help create a year in review for students, and it allows them to share the sights and sounds of some events with friends and family in a way they couldn't before.

The feedback I have received from this book has been overwhelming. I think we may have just raised the bar in our yearbook expectations!

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Frozen's "In Summer" inspires end-of-year video

6/20/2014

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The end of the year is a special time in schools. Emotionally, it can be a confusing time. Excitement about the potential of summer freedom is coupled with the sorrow of missing friends and caring teachers.

I wanted to help students leave school with a smile on their face, so I decided to make an end of school video. When I first saw Disney's Frozen, I remembered thinking the Olaf summer song would be ideal for a school parody.

After tweaking the lyrics slightly to fit the school environment, I assigned different roles to various teachers and asked them to participate. To my delight, they obliged! While my original goal was to make students smile, there were many smiles and laughs that occurred while filming. My favorite scene was when all our faculty played together on the playground...how often do you get to see grownups acting like kids?

When I introduced students to our new school yearbook and its augmented reality component, I told them that as soon as they got home on the last day of school, they could see a surprise video on the first page. After a day or two, I emailed it to parents so they could see it as well. The response was overwhelming and extremely positive.

Positive mission accomplished!

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No more yearbook deadlines through augmented reality

3/18/2014

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Anyone who has ever been in charge of the school yearbook knows how stressful the last few weeks can be. Deadlines, misspelled names, layout tweaks, and missing pictures can all contribute to a frenzied finish. And that's assuming all the orders have been processed!

I've published four yearbooks now: three in Philadelphia and one (almost two!) in Richmond. Each one has been a labor of love. Despite their troubles, I find them fulfilling. It's all worth it when I see the eagerness in kids' faces when they ask if the yearbooks have arrived, listen to them squeal when they see their crazy teacher, or take their pen when they ask me to sign theirs for them.

99% of the yearbook editor's job ends when s/he submits the yearbook to the publishing company. All that's left is for them to be distributed! However, this means that none of the school events from the final few months of school can be captured. UNTIL NOW.

Augmented reality works by a user setting a "trigger image" that causes an app to display other content when activated. By setting each page in the yearbook as a trigger image, each page can come to life with additional pictures, slideshows, and videos. These elements can be changed at anytime online via the Aurasma Studio interface.

This added element means my yearbook team can continue documenting the school year after we submit the book. This year, we're going to be able to include our official class pictures, which weren't possible before (they are taken in late April, well past our submission deadline). We'll also do some interviews with students about the school year and maybe include a message from the teachers.

I'll have to post a follow-up after our book is finished, but here's a preview of what it might look like:

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A yearbook unlike any other

Frozen's "In Summer" inspires end-of-year video

No more yearbook deadlines through augmented reality

Eric De Boer

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