High School Yearbook Themes

Sorting Through High School Yearbook Themes

Customarily, a yearbook theme is chosen at the beginning of the school year, and since the yearbook staff is traditionally composed of aspiring writers, journalists, photographers, and graphic artists, creativity can run at a dangerously high level at those preliminary planning meetings. Prevent drama without curbing enthusiasm by making a list of what would be appropriate as a theme for your school specifically.

What Does Your School Stand For?

Do you go to a school affiliated with a certain religion? Is your school named after someone or something affluent to your community? What unique feature does your high school have that you can launch a theme off of? Many private schools use this tactic when they are searching for a way to memorialize themselves against the influx of larger public schools that often have bigger budgets and more notoriety within their city. Using an out of the ordinary quirk or trait your school is known for can make for a fun yearbook theme.

Some examples of this might be:

• Is your school set up on a hill or in a valley? Consider natural aspects such as a rising sun as a theme throughout your yearbook. Other natural quirks that may be near your school such as a river, a bridge, a famous sports complex, etc. that may be interwoven for a cool look.
• Is your school known for its unique architecture or do you live in a city or town that is known for being a tourist trap? Consider a map, subway, or a similar transportation theme.
• If your school is religious, is there a particular scripture verse or other holy symbol that can be used throughout your yearbook to set the tone of what your school stands for?

Representing All the Way

A lot of high school yearbook themes come about through the campus’ passion for their sports team or other achievement they have enjoyed. If you go to a school with an overwhelming amount of school spirit, the door is wide open for a truly patriotic yearbook theme:

• What are your school colors? Theme your yearbook around a pimped out color scheme based on your school’s team colors.
• What is your mascot? A bear could incorporate buffer pages with claw marks through them, or perhaps paw prints bordering the pictures. A bird could inspire senior quotes on graphic designed feathers, and a horse can launch a Wild West theme.

Pop Culture

Many high school yearbook themes find their inspiration in current trends and traditions. Not too many years ago a California high school designed each page of their yearbook to look like a myspace page, based upon the breakout hit website that is notorious for being a teen networking site.

Other media driven ideas for yearbooks have included:

• American Idol
• Survivor
• High School Musical
• Facebook
• Energy drinks
• Emo anything
• Friends
• The O.C.
• Playstation or Nintendo

Asking Others

While the yearbook staff usually tends to keep to themselves during their meetings, some schools have found theme success through conducting campus surveys or appealing through the school newspaper or website for students to contribute ideas.

You can leave this request open-ended or narrow it down to the yearbook staff’s top three choices and hold a senior class vote. There are plenty of other creative ways to get the student body involved in picking a theme. Ideas include holding a formal contest with prizes for the best idea, enlisting the help of other campus clubs or recruiting a yearbook “historian” to dig through the archives of old high school yearbooks and traditions to find something nostalgic and fun.

Things to Watch Out For

When choosing a theme, it is important to remain timeless. While the above-mentioned pop culture ideas can work, it is also wise to select a theme that won’t have you cringing at your ten-year reunion. People keep their yearbooks for a lifetime, and you don’t want to be like the guy responsible for the hot pink tie-dye that looked great in 1992 but now is atrocious in memory.

Choose classic styles that project your school’s unique flair without relying too heavily upon trends and current ways of thinking. You want your yearbook to be a scrapbook of memories – not a moment frozen awkwardly in time.

After your fantastic theme has been chosen, then the real fun begins. Remember to hear the opinions and suggestions of all those involved in its creation, and you will guarantee a year full of creative fun and incredible memories..