School Years Project Post 1

I have been in education for 19 years.  Over the years I have saved my class photos, faculty photos, memorabilia and other items.  It seemed overwhelming to know what to do with it all.

A few years, at a cropping retreat I ran into a teacher who was working on her school album.  She had narrowed it down to two spreads for each year, and kept the format the same.  At that point I knew that this is what I wanted to do as well.

I bought an album (we r memory keepers, red leather, three ring).  I filled it with pages, and kept place holders for each year.  Over the last two years I have stashed things in this album, sorted photos and tried to find all of the photos for years past.

Still, I didn't know what I was going to do with it all.  I needed a plan.

Finally, about a month ago, I decided to design a sketch that I could follow and get started.  I looked through old magazines for inspiration, and I finally felt that I knew what I wanted to do.  I was going to create two, 2-page layouts for each year.  The first spread would be for group photos, including class photos, faculty photos, or any all-school photos.  The second spread would be for other candids and memorabilia. 

Here is the sketch that I drew:

Sketch for school years album

Here is a sample from my first year teaching.  First, the group photos:

Faculty and Class Photos 1991

 

For this spread, I will use school theme papers.  I have been collecting for the past few years, knowing that eventually I would do this album.  Unfortunately, for this year I do not have the names of the faculty.  I wish that I had done a better job of labeling the group photos.  Overall, it's pretty good, but not great.

For the second spread, I plan to use cardstock in the school's colors.  Then, a primary type patterned paper that is torn and used on both sides.  Finally, I will create what looks like a file folder for the right hand side.  I will include a photo with me and some of my students each year (make sure that I am a part of this album!), and the rest of the space will be for journaling.  The file folder is also a pocket to keep other photos, cards or memorabilia inside.

Here is a sample from my first year:

Some photos from my first year 1991-1992

So far, I have four years done, and most of the paper ready for the other years.  The fun/hard part is picking 6-8 candid photos to use.  Lots of memories along the way.

I have not completed any of the journaling, but I figure that is something that I can add (probably via computer) when I am in the mood to write as opposed to create.

I hope you enjoyed!