Money School
Every Money School lesson, in one list
All 21 lessons across the Teen Money, College Money and First Job tracks — roughly 95 minutes of reading in total. Each lesson gives you one example, one mistake to avoid and one action. Free to read, no account needed.
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Ages 13–18
Teen Money
The mechanics nobody teaches in school: where to keep money, what a paycheck really pays, how credit starts, and how to spot a scam before it costs you.
- Lesson 1 4 min
Bank accounts: checking, savings and why both
A checking account is for money moving through your life — it is spent, swiped and transferred. A savings account is for money standing still, usually paying a little interest while it waits for a purpose.
One action: Open or check one savings account this week and read its fee schedule top to bottom.
- Lesson 2 4 min
Your first paycheck: gross, net and the missing money
Gross pay is what you earned. Net pay is what lands in your account. The gap is withholding: federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare (together, FICA), plus any state or local tax.
One action: Read your next pay stub line by line and write down your real hourly take-home.
- Lesson 3 4 min
Budgeting that survives a real week
A budget is not a punishment list. It is a plan you write once so you do not have to make thirty small decisions under pressure later.
One action: Set one automatic transfer to savings on your next payday, even if it is $10.
- Lesson 4 5 min
Credit basics: what a score actually measures
A credit score is a lender's shorthand for the odds you repay on time. It is built from your borrowing history, not from your income or your savings.
One action: Learn where your credit report comes from and check it free at AnnualCreditReport.com.
- Lesson 5 5 min
College costs: the sticker price is not the price
Published tuition is a starting number. What matters is net price: tuition, fees, housing and books minus grants and scholarships you do not repay.
One action: Run the net price calculator for two schools you are considering.
- Lesson 6 4 min
Scam awareness: pressure is the tell
Nearly every scam needs one of three things: urgency, secrecy, or an unusual payment method. If a request has two of the three, stop.
One action: Turn on transaction alerts for your account and agree with yourself: no payment decisions inside ten minutes.
- Lesson 7 5 min
First investing concepts: ownership and time
Investing means buying a share of something productive — a slice of companies, most often through a low-cost index fund — and letting time do the work.
One action: Read what an index fund is and use the compounding calculator with your own number.
Students and recent grads
College Money
Borrow less, understand what you signed, handle an internship paycheck and a first lease, and start investing while you are still in school.
- Lesson 1 5 min
Student loans: know what you signed
Federal loans and private loans are different products. Federal loans carry fixed rates set by law, income-driven repayment options, and forbearance protections. Private loans do not have to offer any of that.
One action: Log into your federal aid account and write down your total balance and rate today.
- Lesson 2 4 min
Budgeting on an irregular income
Student income is lumpy: aid refunds and summer jobs arrive in chunks, expenses arrive monthly. The job of a budget here is to spread the lumps.
One action: Split your next lump sum by the number of months it must last, and move the difference out of reach.
- Lesson 3 4 min
Internships and paychecks: W-2 vs 1099
As a W-2 employee, your employer withholds taxes for you. As a 1099 contractor, nothing is withheld and you owe self-employment tax on top of income tax.
One action: Ask your next employer whether the role is W-2 or 1099 before you accept.
- Lesson 4 5 min
Taxes for students: filing, credits and refunds
You may need to file if your income passes the filing threshold — and it is often worth filing anyway, because withheld tax comes back as a refund.
One action: Check whether anyone claims you as a dependent before this tax season starts.
- Lesson 5 4 min
Building credit in college, safely
A student credit card used for one small recurring charge and paid in full each month builds history with almost no risk.
One action: Set autopay to the full statement balance on any card you hold.
- Lesson 6 5 min
Roth IRA basics while you are in a low bracket
A Roth IRA is funded with money you have already paid tax on. Qualified withdrawals in retirement, including growth, come out tax free.
One action: Check this year's IRA contribution limit and whether your earned income qualifies.
- Lesson 7 5 min
Renting and your first apartment
Landlords commonly want gross monthly income of about three times rent, plus a deposit and often the first month up front. Budget for move-in costs, not just rent.
One action: Write your true all-in housing number: rent, utilities, internet, insurance, transport.
Early career
First Job
Set up the benefits, the match, the reserve and the investing habit in your first two years, while the decisions are still small and easy to change.
- Lesson 1 5 min
Reading your employer benefits package
Total compensation is more than salary: retirement match, health plan cost, disability cover, life cover, paid leave and any tuition or stipend programs.
One action: Open your benefits summary and list every benefit you are not currently using.
- Lesson 2 5 min
401(k) and the match: the first thing to capture
A match is money your employer adds when you contribute. Capturing the full match is usually the highest-return single move available to a new earner.
One action: Check your contribution rate today and raise it at least to the full match.
- Lesson 3 4 min
HSA basics (and whether you qualify)
A Health Savings Account is available only with a qualifying high-deductible health plan. If your plan does not qualify, the account is not an option that year.
One action: Confirm whether your health plan is HSA-qualified before the next enrolment window.
- Lesson 4 4 min
The emergency fund, built in stages
A reserve is not an investment. It exists so a job loss, a car repair or a medical bill does not become credit card debt.
One action: Name your one-month number and set an automatic transfer toward it.
- Lesson 5 4 min
Clearing debt in the right order
Rank every balance by interest rate and risk. High-rate revolving debt usually costs more than any reliable investment return.
One action: List every balance with its rate and pick your order today.
- Lesson 6 5 min
First car and first apartment, without overcommitting
Both decisions set fixed costs that last years. Fixed costs are what remove options when income changes.
One action: Price the full monthly cost of any car or apartment before you commit to it.
- Lesson 7 5 min
Investing foundations after the basics are covered
Order matters: capture the match, hold a reserve, clear high-rate debt, then invest steadily in broadly diversified, low-cost funds.
One action: Automate one monthly investment amount you can keep up in a bad month.
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