Briefing a school ceremony

Graduations, prize-giving days and awards nights are the formal moments of a school year. Families take time off to attend, and students remember them for years. They deserve the same discipline as any launch, with a few extra considerations.

A running order built around students

1. Arrival, with ushers for families who do not know the campus.
2. A rehearsed opening or processional.
3. A short, warm welcome address.
4. Presentations, with names read clearly at a steady rhythm.
5. A student performance to give the room a breather.
6. A closing message and guidance on photographs and leaving.

Rehearse the walk-ups

Long lists of names are where ceremonies lose time. Mark where students wait, where they climb the stage and where they exit. Give each queue a teacher so the presenter is never left standing with an award and nobody to hand it to.

Brief the emcee properly

A school emcee needs to speak to students, parents and senior guests in the same breath, handle protocol with confidence and pronounce every name correctly. Send the name list early and ask them to check anything unusual. Agree a quiet signal for when the programme needs to speed up.

A good companion read is this guide to school stage programmes and choosing an emcee, which also covers sound and lighting in an echoey hall.

Fit the date to the calendar

Check term dates, examinations and holidays before anything else. The Ministry of Education publishes the school calendar and is the right place to confirm term and holiday dates.

Test the hall

School halls can be dark at the back and loud in the wrong places. Test microphones from several spots, check screens from every row and light the stage so students look good in family photographs.