subject: Modern Sock Hops For Modern Teens [print this page] The most common dances in the 1950's were sock hops. Although they were most popular among high school kids, they were enjoyed by people of all ages. The dances were all about the simple enjoyment of music and dancing.
Times have changed since then, however. Every day, the generation gap between teenagers of the 50's and today grows. It has become hard for teenagers to see the similarities between themselves and the original sock hop teens.
While modern teenagers may not be able to see the things they have in common with 50's teenagers, they have much in common. And they also owe a lot to those first hop attendees. These things might not be easy to see at first, but once you start looking, they are there.
Making these connections also helps to in creating the perfect sock hop for today's high school kids. High school kids then enjoyed music, food and being social, the same as high school kids now. Because these were the main ingredients of these dances, with a few alterations, these dances can be just as fun for teenagers now as they were in the 1950's.
In the 50's, rock and roll was the most popular type of music. And it is still a popular type of music today. But today's rock and roll is almost as different from 50's rock and roll, as today's teenagers are from 50's teenagers.
That doesn't mean that you can't play songs by the Beatles or Elvis, though. However, playing modern songs that are more popular among today's youth would also be a good idea. Just make sure that the modern songs that you add have 50's feel to them in order to go with the dance's theme.
Another similarity between these two generations of teenagers is their love for pop and ice cream, making those items the perfect choice for sock hop refreshments. Make sure that you get a large enough variety of soda that you can host a taste-testing contest at the dance. You could also set up an ice cream sundae station and allow students to create their own ice cream treats using different toppings such as caramel, peanuts, cookies and cherries.
While there are aspects of these dances that need adjusting in order to fit with the younger generations, the changes are minor. Another way you cater to today's teenagers in your planning is to change the dance from a singles dance like it was in the 50's, to allowing teenagers to bring dates. It may seem like the generation gap is too large, but teenagers today can enjoy sock hops just as much as teenagers of the 50's.
