Street dance is an umbrella term for dance styles that developed socially, outside formal studios — in parks, clubs, block parties and on street corners. It covers breaking, popping, locking, hip hop, house, krump and more. What unites them is that they grew out of communities rather than institutions, and they are built on improvisation, musicality and personal style rather than fixed syllabus positions.

Our clubs teach street dance and hip hop foundations to children from Reception through to secondary school.

Hip hop is one style within street dance, not a synonym for it. Hip hop dance grew out of hip hop culture in New York in the 1970s, alongside DJing, MCing and graffiti. Street dance is the broader category that also includes funk styles from the US West Coast — popping and locking — plus house, krump and others that came later from different scenes.

Our classes are built on hip hop foundations, with other street styles introduced as children progress.

Yes — street dance works well for primary-aged children because it rewards energy and personality rather than years of technical training. There is no uniform, no exam syllabus and no requirement to have started young. Classes build coordination, rhythm, fitness and confidence, and children who find traditional dance intimidating often take to street dance immediately.

Junction Dance runs after-school clubs for Reception to Year 3 (Minis), Years 4 to 6 (Juniors) and Year 7 upwards (Seniors).

Children can start street dance from around four or five years old. At that age classes focus on rhythm games, basic grooves and short routines rather than technical detail. From about eight, children can handle longer choreography and the beginnings of style-specific technique. Teenagers can start from scratch at any point — several street dance styles were invented by teenagers.

Our Minis club starts in Reception, so children can begin in their first year of school.

Comfortable clothes they can move in and clean trainers with a flat sole. That is it — no uniform, no specialist dance shoes, no kit to buy. Trainers should be indoor-clean to protect hall floors. Long hair tied back, and a water bottle. Avoid jeans, anything with zips at the hip, and shoes with grip so heavy they stop the feet sliding.

Children come to our clubs straight from the school day, so school PE kit is absolutely fine.

No. Street dance classes for children assume no previous dance training. Beginners learn the same foundations as everyone else — the basic grooves, counts and body control that every style is built on. Because so much of street dance is about individual expression, a mixed-ability class works better here than in styles with a fixed syllabus.

All Junction Dance clubs are open to beginners, and most children join having never danced before.

Breaking is the street dance style developed by Black and Puerto Rican young people in the Bronx in the early 1970s, danced to the percussive breaks in funk and soul records. It has four elements: toprock, downrock, power moves and freezes. Dancers are called b-boys and b-girls — “breakdancing” is a media term the scene itself rarely uses.

We introduce toprock and basic footwork in Juniors, building to floorwork in Seniors.

Yes — breaking made its Olympic debut at the Paris 2024 Games, with b-boy and b-girl events judged on technique, musicality, originality and execution. It will not feature at Los Angeles 2028, as the host city chose a different set of additional sports. Its Olympic appearance brought a wave of new interest in breaking among children.

Children drawn to breaking after seeing it online will find the foundations in our Juniors and Seniors clubs.

Popping is a funk style built on hitting — contracting and releasing muscles sharply in time with the beat to create a jolt through the body. It developed in Fresno, California in the 1970s and is often confused with breaking. Popping stays mostly upright and is danced to funk rather than breakbeats. Related styles include animation, tutting, waving and robot.

Popping foundations appear in our Juniors and Seniors sessions as part of the funk styles block.

Locking is a funk style created by Don Campbell in Los Angeles in the late 1960s, built around a sudden freeze — the lock — that interrupts fast, loose arm movements. It is the most overtly joyful street style: big gestures, points, claps and handshakes, danced with a performer’s relationship to the audience. Locking predates hip hop and came from the soul and funk scene.

Locking’s clear, countable moves make it an excellent style for younger children, and it features in our Minis routines.

Hip hop dance refers to the social dances that developed alongside hip hop music from the 1970s onwards — from the Wop, Running Man and Cabbage Patch through to contemporary party dances. New style is the term for the freestyle-based form that emerged in New York in the 1990s, built on a bouncing groove and layered with grooves borrowed from other styles.

Hip hop is the backbone of every Junction Dance club — it is where our routines start.

House dance developed in Chicago and New York clubs in the 1980s, danced to house music at tempos faster than most hip hop. It is distinguished by intricate, rapid footwork, a rolling sense of the beat, and a loose upper body that follows the feet. The jack — a rippling movement through the chest — is one of its signature elements.

House footwork appears in our Seniors sessions, where the faster tempo suits older children.

Krump is a high-energy style that emerged in South Central Los Angeles in the early 2000s, characterised by sharp chest pops, stomps, arm swings and an intense, emotionally charged performance. It grew out of clowning, a style created by Thomas “Tommy the Clown” Johnson, and was conceived as a positive outlet for anger and frustration.

We draw on krump’s energy in our Seniors choreography, taught in an age-appropriate form.

Waacking is a style built on fast, whipping arm movements and dramatic posing, created in the LGBTQ+ clubs of 1970s Los Angeles and danced to disco. It is performative and musical, with arms tracing circles around the body and strong attention to the music’s accents. Punking and whacking are related names from the same scene.

Waacking’s arm control and musicality make it a useful contrast to groundwork, and we use it in Seniors.

Commercial street dance is the choreographed, performance-oriented style seen in music videos, tours and televised competitions. It borrows from hip hop, popping, locking and more, arranged into tight routines designed to look good on camera. It is the style most children recognise from music videos, and it is the usual entry point into street dance.

Our end-of-term performance routines are commercial in approach — choreographed, rehearsed and built to perform.

Dancehall is a Jamaican social dance form that developed alongside dancehall music from the 1970s onwards. It is made up of named steps — Bogle, Willie Bounce, Nuh Linga and many more — that circulate through the scene and get danced socially at events. Movement is grounded, rhythmic and hip-led.

We teach dancehall steps selectively, choosing those appropriate for the age group, with music edited for school use.

Tutting is a style of intricate hand, arm and finger movement that creates right angles and geometric shapes, named for its resemblance to ancient Egyptian art. It is usually treated as a sub-style of popping, and it is one of the few street styles that can be practised sitting down — which makes it popular with children who have seen it on social media.

Tutting is a favourite warm-up and skills exercise in our Juniors sessions.

Street dance styles developed socially within communities; commercial dance is choreography created for performance and camera. In practice they overlap heavily — most commercial routines borrow street dance vocabulary, and most street dancers also perform choreography. The distinction matters mainly in how a class is taught: freestyle and foundations versus set routines.

Junction Dance teaches both — foundations through the term, built into a performance routine by the end of it.

Junction Dance teaches street dance and hip hop. Our clubs are built on hip hop foundations, with elements of breaking, popping, locking and commercial choreography introduced as children progress through the age groups. Every term builds towards a performance routine that the whole club takes part in.

Yes. Street dance combines cardiovascular work, coordination, core strength and balance in a form most children do not experience as exercise. A typical class involves continuous movement for most of its length. It also develops rhythm, spatial awareness and memory through learning and retaining choreography.

Our clubs run for 45 minutes to an hour, with children moving for most of that time.

Yes — each term at Junction Dance builds towards a performance routine that the whole club learns and performs together. There are no auditions and nobody is left out. Performing is where the term’s work comes together, and it is often the point at which quieter children surprise their parents.

Junction Dance runs after-school street dance clubs at village halls in North Bedfordshire — Lavendon on Mondays and Bletsoe on Thursdays. Classes are grouped by school year: Minis for Reception to Year 3, Juniors for Years 4 to 6, and Seniors for Year 7 and above.

Junction Dance classes are £7.50 per session, booked online. There is no joining fee, no uniform to buy and no exam fees.

Classes are booked online at junctiondance.com. Choose the club that matches your child’s school year, pick your location, and book through the booking system. New starters are welcome at any point in the term.