So often in special education, we don’t have a lot of curriculum resources. Maybe your district provides you with curriculum, maybe not. More than likely, you have to supplement whatever curriculum you have. That cost can start to add up quickly. Here is where TPT Classfund comes in. Through Classfund, you can create a campaign to raise funds to purchase curriculum and resources through Teachers Pay Teachers. Let’s talk about how to create a successful TpT Classfund.
Choose a Campaign Template
Your first step in creating a successful TpT Classfund is to choose a campaign template. There are several templates you can choose from based on your funding needs. These templates will provide you with a base campaign that you can personalize for your individual campaign. If one of the templates doesn’t fit your needs, you can also choose a custom campaign that you’ll design yourself. Whichever route you choose, you’ll want to personalize it to you, your funding needs, and your students.
Write Your Classfund Campaign
The photo above is of my Tpt Classfund campaign I wrote at the beginning of our last school year. When writing your campaign you’ll want to include the following information:
- Your name
- Your classroom type
- What population of students you serve
- What you need the funds for
- How the funds will help your students
- A thank you to your contributors
In addition to that information, you’ll want to add some of your personality to your campaign. For me, I always refer to my students as my little rockstars, so I wanted to include that in my campaign. When you write about your students and how you want to give them the resources they deserve, your love and passion for teaching shines through. Focus on doing that so your contributors can see your why.
Add Resources to Your Wishlist
The next thing you’ll need to do to create a successful TpT Classfund page is to add resources to your wishlist for your campaign. When you are linking your wishlist resources to your campaign, you can also write a blurb about why you’re excited to use the resource with your students. You can also write about how the resource will help your students learn. This component of your campaign helps your contributors see a concrete example of where their contribution is going.
SHARE, SHARE, SHARE
Your next step to creating a successful TpT Classfund is one of the most important steps. You have to SHARE, SHARE, SHARE. If you’re like a lot of other teachers, including me, you might feel weird or uncomfortable asking for contributions towards a fundraising campaign. Hear me when I say this, LET. THAT. GO. You absolutely do not need to feel uncomfortable asking for help. We as educators put in countless amounts of time, money, love, compassion, and care into our profession. You might be truly shocked to see how many people want to support your campaign.
So where should you share? I’m sure this won’t be shocking to here, but you should share it everywhere.
- Texts
When you share it on those platforms, also ask your friends and family to share it for you. I’ve also even gone to influencers on social media and asked them to share with their community. Every share counts.
Engage & Express Gratitude
Your last step in creating a successful TpT Classfund is to engage with your contributors and express your gratitude for their support. To me, this is also one of the very most important steps. I thank all my contributors no matter how they contributed. If someone shares your campaign, if they comment on your share post, if they tag someone on your post, if they contribute to your campaign– they all deserve your thanks and gratitude. I have been able to purchase so many great resources for my kids through TpT Classfund, and none of it would be possible without my contributors.
I hope this step by step how to create a successful TpT Classfund was helpful to you! I am so passionate about teachers being able to create fund raising campaigns like this to provide the best possible education they can to their students. If you need help making your TpT Classfund more successful, leave a comment below. I would love to help you out! If you want to learn more about funding options for your classroom, check out Alyssa’s blog post HERE.
