Chapter 3: Think about bundles
(back to Build a TpT Store)
(This is a long chapter with lots of notes. But don’t feel overwhelmed and don’t feel like you have to digest everything right now. The only point you need to take away from this chapter, is to pay attention to bundles from now on.)
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Bundles.
Having a plan = being able to make productive use of pockets of time.
Planning = planning what bundles to create.
Bundles = saving time. Because teachers don’t have to search around and figure out what to put together with what.
Bundles = consistency. Once students know how the activity works, they become independent, and the teacher doesn’t have to explain what to do all over again.
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Ways to put bundles together
1. Single Activity Bundles
Example 1: Word Search Bundle/I Spy Bundle (phonics)
Set 1: CVC
Set 2: CVCe Words
Set 3: Blends
Set 4: Digraphs
… etc.
Example 2: Write the Room Bundle
Set 1: Counting to 20
Set 2: Comparing Number
Set 3: Addition + Subtraction
Set 4: Place Values
… etc.
Other Examples
- Sensory Bin Bundle
- Secret Words (one set for each category of phonics words)
- Interactive Notebooks Bundle (one set for each topic)
2. Themed Activities Bundle (I love these!)
Examples
- Writing Centers
- Project Based Learning e.g. plan a road trip, run a pizza delivery
- Sight Words Activities
- Escape Room e.g. Escape the Haunted House
- Word Problems (one set per theme e.g. Sports, Spring)
- Bulletin Board Bundle
- Crafts Bundle
- Directed Drawings: one set for each theme/holiday/season
3. Bundles with just 1 theme
These bundles usually put together different activities and different skills, but all in a particular theme. Common examples are Christmas, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Dinosaurs, etc.
4. Skill Bundle (Type 1) – same skill, different activities
This type of bundle tackles a single topic/skill, but throw everything at it. Kind of the opposite of the previous type.
Example 1: CVC Bundle
Set 1: CVC Hands-on Centers
Set 2: CVC Task Cards
Set 3: CVC Digital Games
Set 4: CVC No-Prep Worksheets
5. Skill Bundle (Type 2) – subdivide the skill over different sets
Example 1: Beginning Blends Bundle
Set 1: BL- Blends
Set 2: CL- Blends
Set 3: FL- Blends
Set 3: GL- Blends (and so on…)
Examples 2: Parts of Speech Bundle
Set 1: Nouns
Set 2: Verbs
Set 3: Adjectives
Example 3: Addition and Subtraction Bundle
Set 1: Double digit addition without regrouping
Set 2: Double digit addition with regrouping
Set 3: Word problems
Other examples:
- Phonemic Awareness
- Reading Skills
- SEL Skills
6. Thematic Year-long bundles
These are comprehensive bundles designed to cover all the skills required at the grade level. The sets are usually organized by months.
Common types of year-long bundles:
- Centers
- Morning Bins/Tubs
- No-prep worksheets
- Boom Cards
- Hybrids: (1) centers+worksheets, (2) centers+digital, (3) centers+worksheets+digital
How the monthly themes might look like:
August: Back to School
September: Fall
October: Halloween
November: Thanksgiving
December: Christmas
January: Winter
February: Valentine
March: Spring/St. Patrick’s
April: Easter/Earth Day
May: Outdoor Activities/Cinco De Mayo
June: Summer
7. Thematic Anytime Bundles
These are like thematic year-long bundles, but the themes are not season-specific, so all the skills covered will be suitable for anytime in the year. Instead of organizing the sets by months, the sets may be organized by skills.
Common types of thematic anytime bundles (same as year-long bundles):
- Centers
- Morning Bins/Tubs
- No-prep worksheets
- Boom Cards
8. Curriculum Bundles
This is probably the most ambitious of them all.
They are usually complete programs that cover all the required skills/standards at the particular grade.
Plus, they usually come with a lot more materials for the teacher e.g. lessons plans, trackers, instructions on how the materials can be used in different contexts, etc.
All of the activities within in the bundle are usually assigned to a lesson plan + timeline, complete with teacher guide on how to introduce the activity.
Curriculum Bundles Examples:
- Math Curriculum
- Writing Curriculum
- Reading Curriculum
- Social Studies Curriculum
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Other thoughts on bundles
1. How big should a bundle be?
Anywhere from 2 to 12 is probably the normal.
There are also bundles with hundreds of sets. That happens when a seller puts their entire store into a bundle.
Size does attract some buyers, but quality is still more important. Be known for creating really useful resources rather than really large bundles.
If you’re just starting, start small:
- Minimize frustration.
- Treat the early bundles as a test run
- Get valuable feedback from your early customers before taking on the big, ambitious bundles.
2. Growing Bundles
Growing bundles are a kind of presale. It’s a very popular tool among sellers.
You start selling the bundle before it is complete, at a significant discount.
Buyers who buy early will still get all the rest of the sets that are not yet in the bundle.
The price goes up a little as each new set is added, so the earlier your customers buy, the greater the savings.
Some sellers start a growing bundle completely empty, some sellers (like me) start the bundle with the first set already in.
Most year-long bundles are growing bundles.
Warning: growing bundles can be a lot of pressure because of the timeline. Many sellers will put down a date for when the next set will be released, and the buyers eagerly await. The deadline can become stressful, especially if you haven’t already got your processes and SOPs figured out.
3. 50% off new bundles
Not all sellers do growing bundles, especially if they are unsure of when they will be able to complete the bundle. So the whole bundle at one go instead, and price it at 50% off the first few days.
4. Can you bundle up the single sets later?
You can upload your single sets first, and bundle them at a later date. Your customers can get a refund for the single set if they decide to get the bundle later.
I try not to do this though. Because I want my customers to have confidence that whenever I upload a new set or bundle, which will be at early bird price, they are getting the best deal they will ever have on that set or bundle.
5. Does everything have to be part of a bundle?
No. The single sets can do quite well too.
#1. Items that are not your core products.
If you are creating mostly curriculum stuff like thematic centers or worksheets, you can create other categories of resources as single sets. E.g. Classroom decoration set, behavior punch cards, classroom rules, etc.
#2. If you don’t have the time to plan and create the whole bundle.
Bundles can take awhile to put together. But if you are just creating a single set, they can be created and uploaded really quickly. So if you only have a little bit of time, you can just upload a single set first.
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Chapter 3 Action Steps
1. Read the reviews of the bundles you love, and jot down the important points.
- What do other buyers appreciate about the store/product?
- What convinced the buyer to purchase the product?
- What features do buyers wish was in the product, but aren’t?
For example:
- Low-prep/no-prep
- Engaging for the students/Student beg to play it (every week!)
- Covers most, if not all, of the required standards
- Covers a wide range of skills/topics
- Versatility
- Differentiation options/easy to differentiate etc.
2. Pay attention to bundles and start thinking in terms of bundles from now on.
Do some investigation, start small, and grow your understanding over time!
3. Decide on the easiest bundle you can create right now.
Think of your first bundle as a warm up. Start nice and easy. The small wins will pave your way to the big leagues soon!
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