Will you sign my yearbook?

My school just finished senior grades yesterday, ending their time for assignments, tests, projects, homework, etc.  They have to come in a little bit next week but their days roaming the halls and interactions have come to a close.  With the end of their week, I was blessed to be bombarded by requests of "will you sign my yearbook?"

I love being asked to sign students yearbooks, and I hope all educators feel the same.  Remember, it is a privilege to be asked to sign a students yearbook.  A privilege reserved to educators who made a difference in students lives sometime throughout their schooling years.  Here is my philosophy on signing yearbooks:  make it meaningful and make it long.  They are going to get nostalgic sometime in the future, and they will want to see something written that means something to them, and its hard to do that with "Have a great summer" or "good luck in college next year."  Yes, it takes time to write a meaningful yearbook letter, and its not like they pass out yearbooks in February to help you with time constraints, so you have to be patient and creative.  Be willing to take the time and give a specific memory of that student.  If you are having trouble thinking of a specific memory, take the time to write about their character.  Tell them something great you think they will do in their future.  I always like to give a little relationship advice to my students, because I know they are going to need it real soon, if they don't already.  Lastly, just remind them to always care about and love people, because they should always care about and love others.  And you can model this for them by taking the time to not only write something meaningful in their yearbook, but in everyone's yearbook that asks you.