In February half term Hype delivered two days of HipHop dance workshops in partnership with SOVA

The first day delivered by Amanda, was an Introduction to Street Dance. The second day, an Introduction to Break Dance, was delivered by Flo and supported by Sarah.

Day 1

Amanda - In the morning we looked at old school hip hop movements and some basic breaking - music used jump around, amongst other things, Example of movements include - Basic Hip Hop gestures, Top rocks, Slide and scissor kick, Push back and thread. The participants were also given time to create their own movements in small groups. This was then added onto the choreography that we had created as a group.

In the afternoon a new style street dance routine was taught to the group which incorporated different formations and relationships. Music used - Dream by Nelly. This group also learnt basic movements during their warm up including top rocks. All of the groups were really responsive and a pleasure to work with. A great day all round!

Day 2

Flo - The two sessions were an introduction to hiphop dance and more specifically breaking.

In the morning, the pupils were less than 13 years old. We spent 2 hours going through the foundation of breaking with a routine (that included, toptock, basic footwork and freezes). We also learnt to backspin and some more advanced freezes.

In the afternoon we had teenagers for 2.5 hours. I taught a similar routine, but slightly harder. Then, as we had some time left, we learnt the foundation of popping (Fresno) dancing to Knee Deep by Funkadelic.

Sarah - During February half term I had the pleasure of teach assisting a breakdance workshop held by Bboy Flo at Park Youth Centre. The workshop was split into two sections, which enabled us to cater to different ages and skill levels. In the morning we worked with children under ten years of age and then ages ten upwards for the afternoon session.

For both groups, the workshop basically consisted of foundation breakin’ moves for the kids to learn and develop; movements such as top rock, salsa step, knee drops, freezes and back spins, to name a few. The pupils were also given a context and history of the dance style to help them understand where the moves come from and how they should be performed. The workshop was accompanied by 80s/90s hip hop music also to help them develop their understanding of the genre.

The workshop in the afternoon was slightly more challenging, accompanying a higher level of ability to pick up movement for the older children. Within their session they also learnt a dance style called ‘popping’ in which they learnt how to tense and release their muscles in a single beat.

I would say the workshop definitely challenged both age groups enough to make them feel like they had accomplished something new and interesting. Although not all pupils stuck it out until the end of the session, the majority were very eager and enthusiastic to be learning something different and gave their best efforts all the way through, asking questions, wanting approval, and acknowledgement of what they had achieved. I had a lot of fun and am confident in saying they did also.

Client Feedback

‘Flo engaged the young people in the activity well, they managed to do moves they wouldn't have previously expected to do’

For each project Hype provides we give each participant a feedback sheet to fill in, here are some of the responses.

• Anything else you want to tell us about the project? - ‘It was brilliant!!’ , ‘We had a brill teacher!’
• What have you learnt? - ‘That anybody can dance’ , ‘To dance things i couldn't do before’
• What was the best thing? - ‘To dance with my mates’
• What was the worst thing? - ‘The end of the project’