Sell lesson plans online: lesson and unit plans teachers use
Your planning folder is full of lessons that worked. With some tidying, a clear structure and the materials attached, those plans can become products another teacher can pick up and teach tomorrow.
Short answer: You can sell lesson plans online with TeachLessons by turning your own planning into complete, ready-to-teach products: objectives, timings, materials, activities and assessment, with every handout included. Apply with the short form, then email your files to support@stifo.de. You set the price and keep 70% of net revenue.
What does a sellable lesson plan include?
The plan you write for yourself can be three bullet points on a sticky note, because you know the class and you know what you meant. A plan someone else will teach needs to stand on its own. Teachers buying a plan want to read it once, gather what they need and teach. The parts that make that possible:
- Learning objectives in student-friendly language, plus the standard or curriculum point if you name one.
- Timing for each part: starter, teaching input, guided practice, independent work, plenary or exit ticket.
- Materials list covering what is in the download and what the teacher must supply (dice, rulers, a video they'll find).
- Step-by-step activities with what the teacher says and does, likely misconceptions and questions to ask.
- Differentiation notes for support and stretch.
- Assessment: how the teacher will know it worked, with the exit ticket or quiz included.
- Every resource the plan refers to. A plan that says "use the sorting cards" must contain the sorting cards.
That last point is where many first-time sellers slip. A plan without its materials is a frustrating purchase.
How do I turn my own planning into a product?
Start with lessons you have taught more than once and would happily hand to a supply or substitute teacher. Those have already been tested on real students. Then work through each one:
- Remove anything specific to your school: names of colleagues, room numbers, your school logo, your class list.
- Replace any student work with examples you created yourself. Resources must contain no personal data of real students.
- Rewrite shorthand into full instructions a stranger could follow.
- Check every image, text extract and video reference. Swap anything you don't have the rights to sell for your own material.
- Put the plan, slides and handouts into one consistent template so it looks like a single product.
- Ask a colleague to read it and tell you where they got lost.
One more check before selling plans you wrote for work: whether you can sell them depends on your employment contract and local law. Check your contract or ask your school or union. Our page can teachers sell their lesson plans? covers the general questions to ask.
Should I sell single lessons or full unit plans?
Single lessons are easy to try and cheap to buy. Unit plans are what busy teachers really want: two to six weeks of connected lessons with a scope and sequence, assessments and all materials, so they can stop planning that topic entirely. A good unit plan usually has:
Overview page
Big idea, objectives, lesson list with timings and how the unit fits the year.
Scope and sequence
A one-page table that shows which skills appear in which lesson, so teachers can skip or swap.
Assessments
A pre-test or diagnostic, short checks along the way and an end-of-unit assessment with an answer key or rubric.
Many authors sell both: individual lessons for teachers who need one gap filled, and the unit for those who want the full set. Bundles are only created with your approval, and if we build one, revenue is shared in proportion to the regular prices of the resources inside.
What file format should lesson plans be in?
PDF keeps the layout exactly as you designed it and prints reliably. Lesson plans are one product type where teachers often want to edit, though, to add their own timings or class notes. Many authors include an editable DOCX or Google Docs copy of the plan itself, while keeping handouts as PDF. If the plan comes with slides, add a PPTX or a Google Slides copy link.
Put everything for one lesson or unit in a single ZIP with clear names:
- Persuasive-Writing-Unit-Grade-6-Teacher-Guide.pdf
- Persuasive-Writing-Unit-Grade-6-Slides.pptx
- Persuasive-Writing-Unit-Grade-6-Student-Handouts.pdf
Say whether printables are US Letter, A4 or both. Each resource can be up to 100 MB.
How should I price lesson plans and unit plans?
Price the outcome: how many lessons of teaching the buyer gets, and how much planning time you save them. Our optional suggestion is at least $4.99 for a single resource, and you always set the final price in US dollars.
| Product | Example price | Payout per sale |
|---|---|---|
| Single lesson plan with materials | $3.50 | $2.38 |
| Two-lesson mini sequence | $4.99 | $3.39 |
| Two-week unit plan | $10.00 | $6.79 |
| Six-week unit with assessments | $24.99 | $16.97 |
| Full-year course plans | $50.00 | $33.95 |
Payout = price x 0.97 x 0.70. There are no membership or listing fees. Try different prices in the payout calculator, and read pricing your first teaching resource for more on setting a starting price.
What should lesson plan previews show?
Buyers want to see that the plan is detailed and that the materials exist. Good previews: the overview or scope and sequence page, one page of the actual step-by-step plan, and two or three student handouts or slides. For a unit, a grid image showing every component is very persuasive. Send previews and thumbnails as PNG or JPEG, ideally with a square thumbnail naming the topic and grade.
How do I sell my lesson plans on TeachLessons?
Apply with the short application form. We email you the seller documents and the Resource Submission List, where each lesson or unit gets one row with its file names, title, subject, grades, type, price and a short description. Send the signed documents, files, previews and thumbnails in one email to support@stifo.de, or as one shareable link that opens without a login.
We confirm receipt within 2 business days and write your product pages, author page and landing pages. Plans go live as soon as they are set up, with no separate approval round. You keep your copyright and can sell the same plans elsewhere. Payouts arrive monthly by the 15th via PayPal.
Frequently asked questions
Can I sell lesson plans I wrote while working at a school?
It depends on your employment contract and local law. Check your contract or ask your school or union before selling plans written for your job.
Do lesson plans need to include the worksheets and slides?
Teachers expect a plan to include every resource it refers to. Put the plan and all materials in one ZIP so the buyer can teach without hunting for anything.
Can buyers edit my lesson plans?
If you include a DOCX or Google Docs version, yes. Many authors make the plan editable and keep handouts as PDF, as long as their font and clip art licenses allow it.
What do I earn from a $24.99 unit plan?
You earn $16.97 per sale: $24.99 x 0.97 x 0.70.
Can I sell both single lessons and the full unit?
Yes. Many authors do. Bundles combining existing resources are only created with your approval.
Will TeachLessons write the product description for my unit?
Yes. We write the product page, including description, FAQ, SEO and structured data, from the information in your Resource Submission List.
Ready to sell your teaching resources?
Apply with the short form. We email you the seller documents, you send your final files with previews and thumbnails, and we set up your product pages, your author page and landing pages. You keep 70% of net revenue, with no fees and no exclusivity.
Keep reading
General information about the TeachLessons Seller Program, not legal, tax or financial advice. The signed Seller Agreement sets out the binding terms. Questions: support@stifo.de.