What should I do with 4K

A little info on mutual funds here:

http://www.investopedia.com/terms/m/mutualfund.asp

Basically, a mutual fund is a mixture of different types of investments which provides an investor (you) with an broader range of investments and risk. Professional investment companies create/manage mutual funds and then sell shares to the public, who then become part owners. Many people invest in the same mutual funds, so if it takes a downturn, you all lose a little instead of you losing a lot on your own; likewise, if the mutual fund does well, you all share the wealth.

It should be noted that the more risk you assume, the greater earning potential you have (but you obviously could lose more as well). By the way, the idea is not to earn a return on your money now so you can buy a supercharger next year, etc lol. The idea is to invest now and keep the money invested (and add more) so that you'll have it later on when you retire. Look around at all of the people who are old and didn't invest when they were younger...they're not in real good shape. And...I'm not trying to suggest that you invest every penny you ever get - as with anything, balance is important. Putting a good chunk of that 4k away in a mutual fund would be a nice start, though

It's good to get started investing when we're young because the government may not be able to bail us out when we're older. I'm not a professional investor any thing similar, but I have had a personal finance class and quite a few other finance classes. My investment class starts in a couple weeks