Title III Technology Literacy Challenge Grant

Learning Unit

OVERVIEW

Creating a yearbook is like developing a business, raising the capital($10,000 in our case), marketing, getting investors, and producing the product to meet the budget.  The entire bookkeeping process requires various word processing tasks to prepare adequate records and to be able to construct the yearbook.  This unit deals with creating the spreadsheets, data bases and word processing documents that help to make this process go smoothly

CONTENT KNOWLEDGE

             Declarative                         

The student will know how to create a word processing document.

The student will know how to create a data base.

The student will know how to do a mail merge.

The student will know how to create a spread sheet.

The student will know how to reconcile a checkbook.

Procedural

The students will develop a budget for the yearbook for the year.

The students will prepare an advertising letter.

The students will collect all possible business addresses for a database of advertisers

The students will create an advertising campaign for the year.

The students will develop a marketing plan for the yearbook in the school.

The students will record important data on spreadsheets.

The students will use the internet to track progress of pages.

The students will use checkbook to plot budget and track finances.

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                ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS

What technology tools can be used to keep track of the many lists and figures necessary to complete sales and production of the yearbook?

What marketing skills and tools can be used to meet the budget and perhaps increase the revenue of this year’s yearbook?

CONNECTIONS TO NYS LEARNING STANDARDS

  List Standard # and Key Idea #: Write out related Performance Indicator(s)

      or Benchmark(s)

MST Standard #2:  Students will access, generate, process, and transfer information using appropriate technologies.

*Students use spreadsheets and data-base software to collect, process, display, and analyze information.  Students access needed information from electronic data bases and online communication systems.                             

MST Standard 5:  Students will apply technical knowledge and skills to design, construct, use and evaluate products and systems that satisfy human and environmental needs.

*Project management is essential to ensuring that technological endeavors are profitable and that products and systems are of high quality and built safely, on schedule and within budget.

MST Standard 7:  Students will apply the knowledge and thinking skills of mathematics, science, and technology to address real-life problems and make informed decisions.

*Students will make informed consumer decisions by applying knowledge about the attributes of particular products and making cost/benefit tradeoffs to arrive at an optimal choice.

ELA Standard 4:  Language for Social Interaction.

*Written communication for social interaction requires using written messages to establish, maintain, and enhance personal relationships with others.

INITIATING ACTIVITY

In the spring of their junior year, students will meet with a yearbook publication company representative to look at covers for next year’s book, decide on cost commitment and how the money will be raised.  A  cover and end papers will be chosen at this time.

LEARNING EXPERIENCES

  Each of these processes are used concurrently throughout the unit.

Learning Experiences

Declarative Knowledge

Word processing

Newsletter article

Letter to seniors for wills, baby picture, favorite saying, future plans, etc.

Ad letter

Newspaper articles

Letter to parents about Public Display of Affection Ads

School Photo schedule for September, December, March

Enlarging photo schedule for halls

Memo to faculty re: yearbook pictures

Writing announcements for the Public Address System

Bills

Thank you letter

Copy for the yearbook

Thank you letter to the newspaper listing all advertisers

Memo to students reminding them to pick up yearbook

Database

Development of Advertisers Database, using last year’s,remove PDA ads

Create mailing labels

Development of Senior Parent Database for mailing/labels

Spreadsheet

All Advertisements received this year

All ads sold by seniors(as opposed to mail in responses)

All ads by page number

All ads by size

All ads by seller

All ads paid

Checks Deposited

Names on yearbook

Waiting list

Seniors List

Senior portrait sign-up

Yearbooks sold

Yearbooks by seller

Yearbooks paid

Senior Superlatives

Mail Merge

Use data base and word processing to send letters to last year’s advertisers

Use data base and word processing to send letters to senior parents about PDA ads

Use data base and word processing to send bills, #1,2 & 3.

Use data base and word processing to send thank you notes for ads over $30.

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Manual Labor:

Record all information on computer/save to floppy disk

Deleting information on spreadsheets as necessary to reduce size.

Keep a checkbook for the year for the yearbook(could be converted to Quicken)

Compare checkbook with accounts from school secretary

Make ad sales with sales slip, carbon, receipt, and ad instructions

Make yearbook sales on carbon pads with receipt, correct amounts, etc

CULMINATING PERFORMANCE

The completed yearbook that is paid for with no major bookkeeping problems is the culminating experience.  The use of technology throughout the year should result in a yearbook that is pleasing to the eye and to the consumer, with all books distributed to rightful owners and all advertisers correctly represented in the book.

RUBRIC/YEARBOOKKEEPING

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 NOTE: Rubric or other performance assessment instruments may be used.

PRE-REQUISITE SKILLS

A STUDENT NEEDS TO BE IN HIGH SCHOOL AND HAVE SOME COMPUTER SKILLS SUCH AS SCROLLING AND MOUSE USE.  EVERYTHING ELSE CAN BE TAUGHT BY THE ADVISOR AND/OR YEARBOOK STAFF.  MATH SKILLS ARE NOT IMPORTANT BUT THE CONCEPTUAL SKILLS ARE NECESSARY TO UNDERSTAND YEARBOOK MATH.  HONESTY IN REPORTING AND TAKING MONEY TO THE SUPERINTENDENT’S SECRETARY FOR DEPOSIT ARE ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS.

MODIFICATIONS

This unit can be used with junior high students who have basic computer experience and/or some desktop publishing skills.  It can be used completely independently from yearbook production staff as long as there is communication between the two groups.  It could be done in a business classroom far away from the production place for the yearbook.  The two segments are interconnected though, and one cannot exist without the other. 

UNIT SCHEDULE/TIME PLAN

The unit covers a full school year.  Beginning in the spring with cover selection, pages for underclass pictures can be done before the end of the school year preceding yearbook publication.  Fall begins with ad sales and color deadlines.  Five deadlines have to be met throughout production with the last one falling in February, followed by proofing in March.  The yearbook can be completed in mid April but the bookkeeping goes on till the last book is sold and the sales tax is paid in June.  Then, and only then, will the final tally show whether the yearbook has been profitable, broken even, or gone in the red.  Preliminary forecasts are only conjecture.

TECHNOLOGY USE

Claris Works spreadsheets, data base, word processing, mail merge.

Power point production to encourage ad sales.

On-line access to Jostens website to find where yearbook pages are in production.

E-mail to Jostens representative and yearbook plant concerning production questions.