What’s one thing Northern Virginia yearbooks do very well??The index.

OK, so perhaps it’s not the coolest thing in a yearbook, but it is certainly valuable. It’s a powerful reader aid when current students are looking for themselves and it’s a great resource for future yearbook staffs who wonder, “Did we cover that last year?”

Make Sure You Include the Following:

• Every proper name that appears in the text of your book. Yep, even Justin Beiber, Mickey Mouse and New York City. If your book is an accurate historical record, it will index every proper name, no matter how bizarre.

• If you’ve organized your yearbook chronologically or with non-traditional sections, include a list of every sport, every club, every academic class and every event within a mini table of contents. McLean HS is great at this! McLean even includes the mini-TOC for academics under A.
• If you’re feeling very clever, find a way to incorporate your theme statement into the headline. In 2013, the theme of the McLean HS yearbook was “Get it. Go with It.” As such, the headline for the index said, “Get Indexed. Go Find Yourself.”

• Find a way to include coverage within the text of the index. In Heritage High School’s 2013 book, students are quoted within the index and in mod coverage in the bottom right-hand corner.
• The Journey staff at Heritage also color-coded events, academics, sports teams and clubs within the text of the index, making it easier to find all of the pages where the Marching Band or the Key Club appear. The color coding is another great way to incorporate your chosen color palette.

• Don’t be afraid to include additional mod coverage. You can add clubs or academics coverage — choose your weakness — to highlight activities that wouldn’t otherwise be covered because it happens so late in the year. Trinity Christian’s 2013 SaltShaker staff highlighted district chorus, a Bible Study event as well as two students who participated in dance outside of school.
• Size 9 books should plan on five columns of text. If your book is a size 8 or 9, four columns of text per page will be plenty.