12th Grade — Phase 1, Unit Y3: Layout Production: Designing Yearbook Layouts

🗓️ Before Class: Teacher Prep

Gather/set out: Computer with Photoshop, Canva, or Figma, Section's collected photos and text (from Drive), Class style guide (fonts/colors, if established).
Pull up today's slide deck (see 🖥️ Slide Deck below) so it's ready to project.

🖥️ Slide Deck (project or share with students)

Short, on-the-board pacing slides for today's Do Now, agenda, vocabulary, and exit ticket -- the full detail lives in the handout above, not here.

🧑‍🏫 Substitute Teacher Guide

A scripted, step-by-step runsheet for today's class -- hand this to anyone covering the room who doesn't know the daily routine.

🎯 Essential Question

How do we design a finished, print-ready layout for our assigned yearbook section?

📈 Learning Objectives

By the end of this lesson (4 Days), students will be able to:

Apply design principles (hierarchy, alignment, contrast, consistent type/color) learned in earlier grades to a real yearbook spread.
Build a complete page layout for their section using Photoshop, Canva, or Figma.
Export the finished layout at print-ready specifications (300 DPI).

📐 Standards Alignment

CDOS (Career Development & Occupational Studies)

CDOS 2 — Integrated Learning -- students will demonstrate how academic knowledge and skills are applied in the workplace and other settings.
CDOS 3a — Universal Foundation Skills -- basic literacy, communication, and problem-solving skills required for a career.
CDOS 3b — Career Majors -- knowledge and skills required for success within a specific career pathway (here, Digital Design).

Industry Standards (CCTC)

AR-VIS 3-1 — Analyze art elements and principles of two-dimensional works of visual art in various media, including a branding-style project such as a poster, label, or logo.
IT-WD 03-2 — Prepare visual design specifications, applying principles of design (color theory, alignment, repetition, typography) and identifying technical constraints.

📚 Key Vocabulary

Spread: A two-page layout (left and right page together) in a printed book.
Print-Ready: A file exported at the correct resolution and color mode for professional printing.
Consistent Visual System: Using the same fonts, colors, and layout grid across every section so the book feels like one product.

🧰 Materials & Tools

Computer with Photoshop, Canva, or Figma
Section's collected photos and text (from Drive)
Class style guide (fonts/colors, if established)

🧠 Do Now (Warm-Up)

Look at 2 different pages from a past yearbook. Which one uses hierarchy and alignment better, and how can you tell?

📁 Portfolio Update — Once a Week

Once a week, add your best finished or in-progress yearbook (or, later, studio) work to your portfolio with a 1-2 sentence caption -- and once you're in the Design Studio phase, a photo of the piece in its real, installed location if possible. This is the same evidence trail you'll use for Archive & Portfolio and any PBAT/portfolio review.

✍️ Example description for your Google Sites portfolio (fill in YOUR blanks -- don't just copy this):

For this piece, I made ______________ (name what you made) for “Designing Yearbook Layouts.” This project asked: “How do we design a finished, print-ready layout for our assigned yearbook section?” I used Spread by ______________ (explain how you used it in THIS piece). The hardest part was ______________, and I solved it by ______________. I'm proud of ______________ because ______________.

📋 Main Workshop / Lesson Sequence

This lesson spans 4 Days. Suggested pacing:

Day	Focus	Plan
Day 1	Plan	Do Now (5 min): compare 2 pages from a past yearbook -- which uses hierarchy/alignment better? Mini-lesson (8 min): review design principles for a yearbook spread. Sketch (27 min): sketch a rough layout for your section's spread(s) on paper, deciding where photos, quotes, and headers go. Peer check (5 min).
Day 2	Build — Structure	Do Now (5 min). Demo (8 min): set up the digital canvas at correct print size. Build (27 min): build the grid/placeholder layout. Save progress (5 min).
Day 3	Build — Content	Do Now (5 min). Build (35 min): place real photos and text, applying consistent type and color choices. Save & screenshot (5 min).
Day 4	Finalize & Critique	Do Now (5 min). Peer/teacher critique (10 min): consistency and print-readiness. Final revisions (20 min). Export (10 min): export at 300 DPI.

✅ Assessment & Exit Ticket

Layout scored with a rubric: applies design principles correctly, print-ready export, visually consistent with the rest of the book.

Exit Ticket: What is one design principle you deliberately used on your spread, and where does it appear?

📊 Pull up the anonymous Class Check-In for students to fill out before they go.

🧩 Differentiation & Accommodations

English Language Learners: model every step live, then check in one-on-one; provide translated materials and vocabulary support as needed. Students with IEPs: apply the accommodations and modifications listed in each student's plan (examples include extended time, graphic organizers, speech-to-text tools, chunked instructions, and visual schedules). Students with attention-related needs: break tasks into short, checklist-driven steps and provide brief movement or focus breaks. Students ready for a challenge: take on a leadership role critiquing peers' work, extend the project with a second iteration, or research how today's skill is used professionally in the field.

🔗 Resources & References

Adobe Photoshop Tutorials