4-H

Welcome 4-H Leaders and Youth!

LifeSmarts teaches 4-H students financial and consumer literacy through fun and engaging activities! We are excited to grow our partnership with 4-H, and look forward to a great year of competition.

New 4-H Coach Starter Guide

  • Click here to review the registration process for online competition
  • Click here to review information on how 4-H and LifeSmarts go hand-in-hand!

Compete at the State Level

Students in grades 9-12 may compete in the Varsity LifeSmarts program. Teams of 4-5 students start by competing online, then through their state LifeSmarts program. In some states, you may be invited to participate in an in-person state competition. If your team wins at the state level you will be invited to represent the state at the National LifeSmarts Championship. Check out your state’s page for dates and to contact your state coordinator for details about how to get involved with your state’s competition.

Students in grades 6-8 may compete in the Junior Varsity program. Teams compete online, and in some states are invited to a state JV competition. There is no national championship for JV teams.

Monthly TeamSmarts Awards

From September through January your team may compete against other 4-H teams in the monthly TeamSmarts quiz. Each month the top-scoring 4-H team will receive a $100 cash prize. Click here to learn more about TeamSmarts.

  • Teams are eligible to win one (1) TeamSmarts Award per program year.
  • To compete for the monthly prize as a 4-H team, coaches must indicate that the team is affiliated with 4-H when they register the team. Additional prizes are available for FBLA, FCCLA, Varsity, Junior Varsity, BPA and SkillsUSA teams.

Wild Card bid to the National LifeSmarts Championship

At least one 4-H Varsity team will be invited to compete in the National LifeSmarts Championship as a Wild Card team. Interested teams of 4-5 students, working with an adult adviser or coach, must complete the Wild Card application process. The winning team will receive a $1,000 travel stipend to attend the National LifeSmarts Championship in April. There you will compete at least eight times against teams from across the country.

4-H teams must complete the online qualification quizzes before their state’s online closing date.