I remember the first time I ran into not having enough money to get gas to get to work. It was my own fault so no sympathy needed. I was 19, working full time in a clothing store and definitely not budgeting any of my money. In fact, I wasn’t even keeping track. I just kept swiping my debit card until the cashier would tell me it was denied. Not a stellar money moment for me. And yet, I had to get to work and my car needed gas to get there and there was no way I was going to ask my parents for money. So instead I searched the car, I searched the couch, I looked everywhere for change and then went and filled my car up with the few dollars I had found. Off to work I went.
I wish that were the end of my budgeting woes, that it had been enough of a moment for me to think smarter about my money but alas that wouldn’t come for a few years. I was definitely not a saver, I loved to shop too much, and thinking about where my money went was boring. Now I shudder at the mistakes I made and how much I could have damaged my credit. This is why when H&R contacted me to ask whether I would promote their budget challenge for high school students, I jumped at the chance. After all, this is exactly what I wish I had experienced when I was growing up. Maybe something like this would have saved me from so many stupid decisions and mistakes.
What is the H&R Budget Challenge?
Participants encounter real-world personal budgeting situations, problem-solving, and decision-making through an online simulation and accompanying lessons that meet national standards. With sessions October through April, teachers have six opportunities to participate. This is for students 14 years or older, enrolled in grade 9 through 12 full-time. Today is the kick off to their new event, which of course is free for teachers to sign up for, but even better; there are scholarships and grants to be won!
What are the grants and scholarships?
For the top classrooms and teachers, so those who budget the best, there are prizes to win!
H&R Block will award $3 million in classroom grants and scholarships throughout the competition including a $100,000 GRAND PRIZE SCHOLARSHIP.
When does this start?
Sign up starts today and the first session kicks off in October. This is a great opportunity for teachers to help students learn solid financial skills before they make stupid mistakes like I did.
I have more questions!
Go to their website to read more about it and also register.
PS: I mentioned it already but this is a sponsored post by H&R Block, but how cool is this?
Pernille Ripp 
Hey I know this is off topic but I was wondering if you knew of any widgets I could add to my blog that automatically tweet my newest twitter updates. I’ve been looking for a plug-in like this for quite some time and was hoping maybe you would have some experience with something like this. Please let me know if you run into anything. I truly enjoy reading your blog and I look forward to your new updates.
I was curious if you get paid for the sponsored posts. I understand you have to make ends meet for your family, but I have seen more sponsored posts on your site and wanted to see if this is a new revenue source for you.
I say no to about 95% of the sponsored posts I am approached with, but the few that I do post there is usually something given to me, which is why they are sponsored. That being said, I only post those things that I would actually like to do myself. That is why I don’t have any adds on here either (except for the ones WordPress I think adds) and those are out of my control. No, I don’t see this as a new source of income for me because that is not what this blog is about. I hope that answers your question