☕️ Busy? Here's the TL;DR
- School newsletters convey both info & school values
- Use visuals intentionally to set the mood of your update
- Make smart use of both title & subtitle to evoke your mission
- Remember what sticks in a reader's mind is what they read first
- Include multilingual families by spelling out translation features
Your weekly school newsletter does more than convey info.
What you share and how you share it communicates what you, & by extension your school, consider a priority. Which makes your weekly updates a great opportunity to reinforce your school’s mission and values. How? By using every element of your newsletter intentionally.
Let’s dive in.
1. Your visuals set the tone.
Color and design convey mood. So does font — think Comic Sans vs. Times New Roman. The visual elements of your newsletter set the tone before anyone even begins reading. Consider this example:
What do the colors and design make you feel? Use that to inform your own newsletter design.
2. Your header is valuable space.
Where design is first impression, your header creates impact. Is your title playful or serious? Do you invoke your school’s mascot? Beyond the date, do you put your subtitle to work? Consider this:
This school’s values are reinforced in the subtitle.
3. The first part of your newsletter is what people read.
Folks'll skim your update on their phone, while on the go, for max 10 seconds. So, what they see first is what sticks. Maybe it’s the most urgent info, or maybe it’s a feel-good. Choose what fits the values you want to convey.
This staff newsletter opens with a weekly inspirational quote and a cheerful greeting.
If teacher only gets this far, it’ll at least set a positive intention for the week.
4. Make it easy for everyone to access info.
1 in 5 K-12 families speaks a language other than English at home. If your updates are translatable, make sure to periodically reinforce HOW to translate the update, optimally in the languages people speak at home. Taking the time to put translation instructions in their language will communicate to multilingual families that their participation matters to you.
Principals put a lot of effort into upholding their school’s mission and values — use your weekly updates to show that off. Here’s a template to get started.
