A sock hop is a dance, often held for teens, that first became popular in the 1950s, when the term was incidentally coined. Since dances were often held in school gymnasiums, dancers would often kick of their shoes and dance in socks or stockings so as to avoid marking up gym floors, and to get better slide in dances like the Twist, the Mashed Potato and others. Dances held might simply be referred to as sock hops, since the practice was so common.

Several 1950s songs mention the sock hop. Little Richard’s tune Ready Teddy talks about the “sock hop ball.” The most specific reference is the very popular 1958 Danny and the Juniors song At the Hop, describing the regular sock hope scene. Many movies depict sock hops, most particularly the 1973 George Lucas film American Graffiti.

What differentiates a sock hop from other dances for teens is that they are informal. They’re thus different from homecoming dances or proms because they’re less dressy and more common events. Dancers didn’t necessarily attend with a partner, unless they were dating someone. Instead they showed up to dance to either live or recorded music. A sock hop didn’t even have to be held in evening hours, but could instead be held as an afternoon, early evening, or after school event.

American Graffiti depicts a sock hop in 1962, but as the sixties closed, the practice of sock hops became much less common, and were replaced in the 1970s by “dances,” still relatively informal events, but ones where dancers kept their shoes on. Dance styles changed to reflect much different music. First in the late 1960s and early 1970s, much of the psychedelic rock or standard rock of the time were popular choices, and then later the disco music of the mid 1970s to early 1980s reintroduced the partner dance for many tunes, and often required women to dance in heels.

The sock hop didn’t completely die, however, and the tradition of having informal dances especially for younger kids in grade school or middle school was once again embraced in the 1990s. Many school administrators and parents hoped to discourage kids from viewing dances as “romantic” events. Yet they still wanted to let kids enjoy dancing to music. Thus school dances often became labeled as sock hops again.

Music played at a modern sock hop can range from anything modern to anything dating well back to the 1950s, and kids are encouraged not to bring dates, but to come alone. Some elementary schools even hold family oriented sock hops. This strips dances of any romantic or sexual elements because kids attend with their families and chaperones exist in every direction. While some kids might complain about excessive chaperones, it does give children an opportunity to giggle at their parents’ dance moves, who frequently love to participate in these dances just as much as their kids do.