Hi! You can really only charge so much for a dance, so you need to find other things to incorporate into it to bring in more money. Probably the best thing you can do is get items donated by local businesses and auction them off during the dance. You can also do a 50/50.

Our school held a Family Sweetheart Dance the Friday night after Valentine’s Day. Flyers were sent home and the dance was mentioned during the morning school announcements. The teachers decorated the room with the Valentine decorations used earlier in the week throughout the school and classrooms. The admission price was $3 per person and children under 5 were free. We brought Polaroid film and created picture holders using cardstock, a heart stamp and a silver inkpad. A few of the parents volunteered to be the photographer and the families paid $5 for a memento photograph. . The PTA sold refreshments: sodas and bottled water, pizza, chips. We hired a DJ for $250 and at one point in the evening the kids had to dance with their parent/grandparent/guardian. Everyone that attended received a piece of chocolate candy. Many of the family came dressed to the nines. The families had a good time, which was the most important thing, and the PTA raised a few hundred dollars as well.

We do a father/daughter dance but it's not intended as a fundraiser (it raises funds though). Last year it raised over $3000. We used to do a mother/son dance too but the moms complained that all the boys did was run around. It brought in about $300. I've never been to the father/daughter dance but I know they charge $5 per person. They get a big balloon design and take polaroid pictures for free. Most of the money is raised from raffles, kids and adult prizes. We now do a mother/son bowling night. This year was the first year and we just broke even. The night was a lot of fun for everyone so we'll do it again next year.

Our school was considering a mother-son, father-daughter dance around Valentines Day. Are these successful fundraisers and what do you charge for admission. What other things need to be included to make this night successful? What needs to be avoided? Thanks for your input.