Lesson packages: how to sell a prepaid package without chaos

The short answer: a private lesson package is a package of several lessons that the parent pays for in advance, at one price. It is good for you (money in advance, fewer debts) and good for the student (commitment, and sometimes a discount). To keep it from turning into chaos you need three things: a fixed size, a clear rule for cancellations, and exact tracking of how many lessons were used.

What a package is and who it suits

A package suits when there is regularity: a student who comes every week, matriculation prep over several months, or regular music lessons. It suits less a student who comes "when needed", once a month.

If you are still deciding between paying in advance, paying at each lesson and paying at the end of the month, we have a full comparison in paying for private lessons: in advance, per lesson or at the end of the month.

How many lessons in a package and what discount

There is no "right" size, but it is worth choosing one or two and sticking with them. A few common options:

• 4 lessons - about a month for a student who comes once a week. A small commitment, easy for parents to say yes to.
• 8 or 10 lessons - for regular students or for exam periods.

The discount is a business decision. An example (the numbers are for illustration only), when the regular rate is NIS 150:

Note: a discount that is too big turns the package into your new regular price, because all parents will choose it. A small discount is enough to reward paying in advance. We wrote about the base rate itself in the guide to how much a private lesson costs.

Validity, cancellations and what happens to a cancelled lesson

This is where most of the chaos comes from. Before you sell the first package, write answers to these questions:

1. Is there an expiry? For example: 4 lessons within 6 weeks. Without an expiry, a package can drag on for half a year.
2. A cancellation in time - does it take a lesson off the package? It is usual that it does not.
3. A late cancellation - does it count as a lesson that took place? It is usual that it does, according to your cancellation policy.
4. A cancellation by you - does not take a lesson off, and the lesson returns to the package.
5. A refund - what happens if the student stops in the middle.

It is worth writing these rules in a short set of terms and sending them to the parents before payment. How to word a cancellation policy that holds up is in the guide to a private lesson cancellation policy.

Tracking: how many were used and how many are left

The classic mistake: "I think he has two left". And then the parent is sure there are three. To avoid it:

• Record every lesson on the day it took place, not at the end of the month.
• Update the parent when the package is about to run out, not after it has run out.
• Keep the payment date and the amount, so that it can always be checked.

In a table on paper or in Excel this works with one or two students. With ten students, manual counting breaks down quickly.

How to offer a package to parents

There is no need for a big presentation. A short message, after the student has already started learning and there is regularity, works best. Wording to copy (fill in the brackets):

Hello [parent's name], since [student's name] comes regularly, I am offering the option to pay in advance for [number] lessons at NIS [price], instead of NIS [regular price] a lesson. The package is valid for [period]. A cancellation up to [number] hours before the lesson does not take a lesson off the package. If that suits you, I will send the payment details.

Note that the message answers in advance the three questions the parent will ask: how much it saves, until when, and what happens on a cancellation.

Three mistakes to avoid

1. Too many sizes. A package of 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 lessons looks flexible, but confuses the parents and you. One or two are enough.
2. A package with no expiry date. A student who stopped coming in the middle of the year and still "has three lessons" is an awkward conversation half a year later.
3. Starting before the money arrives. A package starts when it has been paid. If you start teaching "on account" of the package, it turns into an ordinary debt.

How a package works in the Teaching Studio

In Teaching, packages are part of the Studio, an optional module that you turn on in settings. A tutor who has not turned it on sees nothing of it. After turning it on, on each student's card (the "Classes" screen) there is an "Access" button, and there you add a package: a number of lessons and a price.

What the system does:

• A package that was not paid does not cover lessons. When the parent pays you, you press "Mark as paid" and the package starts to work.
• A package that was paid covers the student's lessons from the day it was created onward, from oldest to newest. Each covered lesson is marked "paid".
• The price is divided between the lessons to the last agora. The last lesson gets whatever is left of the package price, so the total always equals exactly the price that was set.
• Alerts: when one lesson is left, a note "Package running low" appears in the student's timeline, and when it has run out - "Package used up".
• Cancellations: a cancellation in time does not charge. A late cancellation stays an active lesson and is charged like a lesson that took place. A covered lesson that you cancel returns to the package.
• In the history and in the export: the purchase appears as a row of its own in the student's history (for example "Package 4 lessons · NIS 300 · used 1/4"), and in the Excel export there is a "packages" tab. The amounts are not counted twice.
• A package that was paid keeps covering lessons that take place even if you turn the Studio off.

And the money itself? The parent pays you directly, by transfer, in cash or in any way you agreed. Teaching does not charge parents. It tracks what was paid and what was used.

In the Studio you can also upload terms as a PDF file and ask the student or the parent to sign it digitally from their personal link. This is a good place to write the package rules: validity, cancellations and refunds. On managing students in Teaching as a whole, see the guide to a student management app.

In summary

A good package is simple: one or two sizes, a small discount, written cancellation rules, and tracking that does not depend on memory.

Written by the Teaching team. Updated on 14.10.2026. The numerical examples are for illustration only.