Managing Your Money

Money never goes out of style -- bumming off your parents does. Knowing how to manage your money is a skill that will benefit you throughout life. From deciding whether to spend or save your allowance to figuring out how to read your paycheck, it's never too early to start learning about finances.

The Mapping Your Future Web site helps you learn how to manage your money with tips for everything from starting a budget to balancing your checkbook.

Buy it or not? Cash, check or credit? Do you ever ask yourself these questions? Well, you can get some answers to those questions at The Mint: It Makes Perfect Cents Web site. There are lots of fun games, surveys and cool quizzes like "What Kind of Spender Are You?" that help you get started on the road to financial success.

At Fed101: The Federal Reserve Today, you can find out where a check or dollar bill goes once it leaves your hand, or you can examine a virtual bank to see if it meets the Federal Reserve's requirements.

As if saving money wasn't already fun, Practical Money Skills for Life has plenty of cool games like Financial Football. It also has lots of facts and tips to help you learn even more about how to save, spend and invest your money.

Debt Free U - Financial Literacy Resources is another site where you can find free financial literacy information like self-assessment tools and fun quizzes that can test your knowledge about managing debt.

Students and teachers can also take advantage of Consumer Jungle's tools and tips. There students can find worksheets on vehicle comparison shopping, financing a car loan, insurance basics, and much more.

The Financial Literacy and Education Commission (FLEC) recently launched MyMoney.gov with enhanced interactive features and utility to provide more resources to borrowers seeking information about their personal financial decisions. The site is also available in Spanish and creates an online point of access to financial information from the 21 Federal agencies, departments and buries that comprise the FLEC.