Celebrating American Girl Maryellen With A ’50s Sock Hop

There has been much excitement in my house over the release of the new American Girl Maryellen. My daughter could not wait to see her in person when she attended a birthday party at the American Girl store last week. She ohhed and ahhed over each detail adding Maryellen this and Maryellen that to her Christmas wish list. Little did she know I had a surprise waiting for her. 

When American Girl asked me if I would like to host a sock hop in honor of the Maryellen release, I didn’t hesitate. Any excuse to plan a fun day with my girls, right? Thanks to American Girl I turned a day off from school into a sock hop complete with cool clothes, decorations, hula hoops, rock and roll and, of course, American Girl. 

Imagine my daughters’ surprise when they discovered the playroom couch moved into the hall and decorations hung on the wall. K immediately recognized the jute box decorations and squealed with delight as I presented each girl with an American Girl Maryellen Poodle Dress in her size, matching American Girl Maryellen Poodle Skirt Outfits for their dolls and Mini American Girl Maryellen dolls.

Once everyone was dressed, it was time for a sock hop. But first, I had to explain to my daughters what a sock hop was. 

That is my favorite thing about American Girl, sure the American Girl dolls are pretty dolls with great accessories, but as I have discussed with other moms — it is so much more than that. The stories and the history behind each BeForever American Girl gives girls the opportunity to learn about and explore what life was like in another time. 

Before my daughter read Kit Kittredge books this summer, she had never heard of the great depression. But while reading about Kit and her family’s struggles during the 1930s it opened a door for us to talk about what happened during that time and how it effected families. 

Now with the new BeForever American Girl Maryellen, my daughter has the opportunity to learn about the ’50s and what life was like when her grandparents were children. And the lesson started with a sock hop! Pandora made it was for me to stream ’50s rock and roll to our party so I could teach my daughters how to do The Twist and the Hand Jive! 

Even the clothes were a learning opportunity. K thought the poodle skirts looked French because of the Parisian Poodle and Sissy thought her Bitty Baby was ready to play soccer because her saddle shoes look like soccer cleats to her. 

After the sock hop was over all that was left to do was for my daughter to dive headfirst into the Maryellen books. And she didn’t put the book down until she finished it that evening. The book offered even more insight into life in the ’50s and K was ecstatic to learn that Maryellen grew up in Daytona Beach, FL and loved NASCAR races — just like her.

She also came to me while reading to ask me what Polio was. Maryellen had Polio as a little girl, and luckily it is a disease K had never heard of. So we talked about what it did, about iron lungs and about the scars many children of that generation have on their arm from the vaccine. Who would have though you could learn all of that from a sock hop?

The sock hop was a complete success. The girls learned about life in the ’50s, enjoyed their surprises and had a ton of fun.

If you want to host your own sock hop, be sure to check out the American Girl Maryellen sock hop planning tips where you can find the printable decorations I used plus invitations, party games and more.