Beaver Cleaver flew frantically through the front door, slamming it so hard the windows rattled.

"Theodore," cried his mother June, "Slow down. How many times have I told you not to make a ruckus!"

"Sorry mom, but that crazy girl next door was trying to give me a kiss."

June Cleaver shook her head in bewilderment. It was tough raising Beaver and his brother Wally since her husband Ward had passed away. Proms, curfews, hormones -- what was a single mother to do?

For several months, June had deliberated on how to invest the insurance money she had acquired as a result of Ward's sudden death. Beaver had wanted to buy a candy store; Wally had wanted to buy a pink cadillac. June had wanted to invest it for the future so she could provide a wonderful life for her soon-to-be-not-so-little boys.

June lovingly poured the cookie batter in perfect teaspoonfuls onto a tin, wiping her hands on her apron. Her ears perked up as she heard Wally saunter into the kitchen, but she cringed when she saw that Eddie Haskell -- one part friend, two parts rascal --accompanied him.

"Good afternoon, Mrs. Cleaver, you look beautiful today," smiled Eddie with a grin that made Mac the Knife's pearly whites seem saintly. "Did Wallace inform you as to my new position?"

June thought to herself that Eddie would have a great future in politics.

"I'm working as an assistant to the wonderfully successful and dashing Mr. Churner, who has authorized me in my capacity as an assistant investment advisor, to talk to you about financial planning."

No, thought June, make that future in used cars.

"Wow, Eddie," piped the Beave, "what a cool suit you're wearing. Where'd ya get the money for it?"

As June turned her back to slide the cookies into the oven, Eddie gave Beaver a kick that was destined to turn his tiny tushy purple by the morning.

"Mr. Churner would like you to place your sudden financial good fortune in our hands. And because you are a dear and personal friend of mine, and a very intelligent woman, he will make you a special deal. Each year, he will invest your money in 20 to 30 can't-fail stocks. After a few weeks, after they've risen dramatically in price, he'll sell them so you can lock in your profits. This way, you can watch your money grow on a moment-to-moment basis while counting your profits all the way to the bank."

June was impressed with Eddie's presentation. It sounded logical. But she had just finished reading the Motley Fool Investment Guide and had been impressed with something called the Foolish Four approach. She remembered that it was easy and only took about 15 minutes each year. After all, parenting two mischievous boys didn't leave her much time to watch her portfolio. Hmmm, she thought, this seems in direct conflict with Eddie's suggestions.

"Mrs. Cleaver," piped Eddie when he saw June reaching for her investing book, "since nobody can predict the market, moving in and out of stocks quickly is really the best way."

No, no, thought June, I want to try this Foolish Four method, but what exactly should I do? As she looked down at the book, she noticed the lips of the Motley Fool on the book's cover moving frantically. I must get my eyes examined, thought June.

But as she looked down a second time, his lips not only moved, but began speaking:

"Mrs. Cleaver," said the Motley Fool, "buying the Foolish Four is a safe and time-proven method to earn money in the stock market. In order to begin, please get a listing of the 30 Dow stocks and rank them by price and dividend yield.

"Right, Motley, but oh dear, what should I do next?"

*June should do which of the following?*

1) Buy the 4 lowest-priced yielders;

2) Buy 4 of the 5 lowest priced high-yielders, eliminating the lowest-priced of the five and doubling up on the second lowest priced;

3) Buy the 4 highest priced low-yielders;

4) Buy 4 of the 5 highest priced low-yielders, eliminating the highest-priced of the 5 and doubling up on the second-highest price.

Enter your selection in the field to the lower right, and get immediate feedback on the answer!

The answer is 2.

The Foolish Four is a variation of Michael O'Higgins's Beating the Dow strategy, an investing method which returned an average of 22% over the past 25 years. With this approach, you only make trades once per year, thereby saving lots of money on commissions and requiring only about half an hour of work. Begin by locating a list of the 30 Dow stocks either in the Motley Fool's Foolish Four Area or in Investor's Business Daily. Rank them by yield going from highest to lowest, and then by price. Buy the four lowest-price high-yielders, eliminating the lowest priced of the five and doubling up on the second lowest priced. (If you are confused, click here to learn more about this investing technique.)

"Mom," moaned the Beave, "the cookies are burning!"

June was so wrapped up in her investment thoughts, she forget what was the most important thing in her life -- being the perfect sitcom mom. Yes, thought June, I am going to try the Foolish Four. This way, I can beat the market in the long run and not have to worry about it on a daily basis -- not to mention the commissions I will save.

"Eddie," smiled June, "thanks for your advice, but no thank you. I will invest my own way. Now, have a cookie."

Eddie groaned. No sale today. But wait!

"Well, Theodore," chided Eddie, turning to the Beave, "I got a great idea. Let's take your weekly allowance and invest it in 20 to 30 stocks."

"No way, Eddie," chirped Beaver, "I'm sticking by mom on this one. I may be a little squirt, but I'm no lower-cased fool!"

Leave it to Beaver, beamed June..

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