Harris County Department of Education is providing teacher training and materials for “Financial Mathematics,” a high school course about money management. The course will help students apply critical-thinking skills to analyze personal financial decisions.

HCDE Curriculum Director Nicole Shanahan teamed with curriculum writer, presenter and “Mathematics of Money” author Arthur Howard to offer the training. Shanahan also worked on the state curriculum with the Texas Education Agency through scope-and-sequence committee.

The Texas Financial Education Endowment provided HCDE’s Teaching and Learning Center with a $19,000 grant to fund the training for high school math, social studies and career and technical educators. For more information, email nshanahan@hcde-texas.org.

Consultant Howard offers these sage, tried-and-true financial tips to teens (and their adults).

5 tips of financial advice:

1. Train for success: Get a part-time job. If you plan to go to college, apply for scholarships and grants and get an associate degree and transfer. Get an education that gets you a job.
2. Be the employee everybody wants: Be willing to take an internship. Show up early every day and be willing to stay late. Three requests from employers—take time to study how your company works; learn to work well with others; and be a pioneer.
3. Live within your means: Don’t finance your lifestyle on credit. Buy what you need, not what you want. Build up an emergency fund. Start saving now for your home down-payment.
4. Spend like this “is” a tomorrow. Budget, making savings a priority. Pay as little withholding as you can. Use IRAs and take advantage of employer matching.
5. Protect your love ones: Buy a burial policy when young, and term-life later. Save to replace you. Plan for your children’s education.