Tips For a Fun Sock Hop Fundraiser Dance

Rock the Night Away With a Sock Hop Fundraiser!

A Sock Hop is a fun fundraising idea for your school or club. Generally, it will be one of the middle or high school clubs that would use this as a fundraiser. This is especially good for fall and winter time fundraising, as it’s an inside event. It could be used for Halloween, Christmas, Winter, or as a February Sweetheart dance. We have lots of tips for a successful and fun Sock Hop fundraiser dance.

What Is a Sock Hop?

Are you asking, “What is a sock hop?” Well, back in the day, 50s and 60s, a sock hop was a common term for a dance. Since high school dances were usually held in the gymnasium, there was usually a “no shoes” requirement because they wanted to keep the gym floors in good shape, with no marring from hard soled shoes. So, everyone had to leave their shoes at the door and only wear their “socks”. And, “hop” was slang for a dance, therefore, Sock Hop.

To bring back the feel of the fifties, declare your dance a Sock Hop and have everyone check their shoes at the door. However, if you think that part wouldn’t go over well, you could call it some other catchy name. In the 50s, a dance was also sometimes called a “Bop”, so you could use that.

Name Suggestions:

Sock Hop
Rockin’ 50s Hop
Rockin’ 50s Bop
Happy Days Dance

Essentials for a 50s Theme

The Rock ‘n Roll 50s theme is easy to do. There are 4 essentials to capture the feel: music, dancing, ice cream sodas, and bubble gum!

Rock ‘n Roll music
Dancing
Ice Cream Sodas
Bubble Gum

50s Music

For a fifties dance, you would of course play all 50s music. It would be great if you have a local high school band that plays this type music! It’s not likely you will have a real jukebox available, but you could use a decorative one to set the scene.

Music Ideas:

Elvis Presley
Jerry Lee Lewis
Bill Haley
Buddy Holly
Chuck Berry

50s Dances

It would also be fun if you have a few adults that can be available to show off the dances of the fifties. These dances were fairly simple and will be easy to learn. Possibly, you could have videos playing showing how to do various dances. This website, https://dance.lovetoknow.com/dance-instruction/50s-dance-moves, has more information and tutorials about 50s dances.

Dancing Ideas:

Swing Dancing
The Stroll (You have to do this one!)
The Hand Jive
The Bop (Yep, it was an actual dance!)

Decorating for a Sock Hop

Have your Sock Hop in the school gym if possible. Decorate with 50s themed decorations. A juke box standee and other fifties cut-outs would be great. You don’t want to spend a lot of money on decorations, so keep it simple. Balloons are an inexpensive way to decorate, along with crepe paper streamers. Set up your concession stand to look like a Soda Fountain.

Decorating Ideas:

Balloons & Streamers
Jukebox Standee
Fifties Cut-Out Decorations
Soda Fountain (Concession Stand)

How to Earn Funds by Having a Sock Hop

The entrance fee would be the main source of funds, but you can also set up a food stand to sell fifties themed foods. A mock Soda Fountain would be very cool. You could sell ice cream sodas, root beer floats, and snack foods such as hot dogs, potato chips, and Cracker Jacks. Have students running the concession stand dress as soda jerks with an iconic soda jerk hat.

Bubble gum was very popular in the fifties. Everyone chewed it and blew bubbles…the bigger the better! Be sure to have lots of bubble gum for sale at your Sock Hop.

Earning Suggestions:

Entrance Fee
Soda Fountain
Socks
Dubble Bubble bubble Gum (This brand was the 50s era favorite!)
Raffle (Sell tickets for a 50/50 raffle or select a cool prize.)

Sock Hop Activities

A Sock Hop can also include a few fifties themed activities. Of course, a dance contest would be the main event! Other contest could include bubble gum blowing, Hoola Hooping, and Name That Tune.

For fun prizes, use simple items that carry out the fifties theme, such as Elvis sunglasses and bubble gum.

An additional fun idea for any event is a “Photo Booth” or area with 50s themed photo props for silly picture taking.

Dance Activity Ideas:

Fifties Dance (Couple with best Fifties dance moves)
Bubble Gum Blowing (largest bubble)
Hoola Hoop (who can keep hoop going the longest)
Name That Tune (the person with most correct answers of tunes of the 50’s)
50s Photo Props

Prize Ideas:

Elvis sunglasses
Yo-Yo (popular in the 50s)
Hoola Hoop (for the hula hoop contest)
Bag of bubble gum (for the bubble gum contest)

Rock ‘n Roll!

Fun Fundraising Idea!

Students will love to Rock ‘n Roll with a Sock Hop fundraiser dance! They can have fun dressing in fifties clothes (if they want to) and learning the old dances. Step back in history and see how much fun it was! This is certainly a fun fundraising idea!

You might also like these fundraising tips and ideas:

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