Help Out Local Schools at No Cost to You

Remember when you were a kid and you got to do lots of fun stuff at school? With increasing costs and decreasing budgets, today's students aren't as lucky. Helping out local schools can be as easily as shopping at your favorite stores.

Target - Using your Target RedCard will not only save you 5% on every purchase but also donate 1% to the school of your choice. The keyword here is CHOICE. You must select a school when you apply or login to your account online to select a school. You can select your local school, your alma mater, or any other school in the country.

FundsOn - A site similar to Groupon but designed with fundraising in mind. Last week a school was selling Starbucks giftcards on the site at a discount. The school got funds and shoppers got discounted giftcards. Each fundraiser is designated to a specific school and/or group which set up the sale.

Mamapedia - Another site similar to Groupon. When you create your account, you can do a search for the school of your choice. After, any deal you purchase will automatically donate 5% of the price to your selected school.

If you do want to donate a few dollars to local children, I recommend checking out Donors Choose which allows teachers to post needs and allows you, the donor, to choose where your money goes. You select the teacher, activity, and how much you want to donate.

Do you know of any other stores or websites with similar programs? Feel free to comment below and let your fellow Making Cents of It readers know.