Dear Dr. Tightwad
We have just gone through our first prom season with our daughter, and we are physically and financially exhausted. This one event cost us hundreds of dollars.Did we go overboard, or is that the price you have to pay to make a memory?
Answer - In Dr. T's experience, proms are exciting and memories pleasant, but the event is rarely socko enough to justify the kind of outlay that seems to be common nowadays. Parents have to keep their perspective so kids don't expect more than one evening can deliver - and end up both disappointed and broke.
One of the highlights of my own prom career was a green linen gown that fit like a glove but cost only about $25 (a bargain even then) and a long white evening coat made by grandmother.
In anticipation of next year's prom, Dr. T assumes you've already thought of money-savers such as buying a gown at a consignment store or off the clearance rack, hosting the pre-prom dinner at your house and, of course, splitting the cost with your daughter.
The sanest observation I ran across during this prom season was a quote attributed to a 15-year-old who was shopping for a gown.
"I'm only a sophomore," she said, "and $250 is too much to spend on a dress."
Dear readers - Kids and money is becoming an increasingly hot topic. That's good news for parents because it means more help is at hand for teaching children money management skills.
For example, the Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy, led by government, educational and financial organizations, has set a goal of financial competency for high school graduates by 2007.
The coalition has developed teaching guidelines for personal-finance topics in grades K-12, along with a clearinghouse for teaching materials. (Call 202-466-8610 or check the Web site: www.jumpstartcoalition.org.)
When the coalition sponsored a test of high school seniors' financial savvy, the average score was 57 percent - less than a passing grade by most academic standards. Nearly 60 percent of those surveyed said they learn most about managing money at home; fewer than 11 percent cited school.