How To Jerk

Learning how to jerk is not hard if you have a lot of energy and passion for it. This 1960s dance form is a fun way of dancing, more like its precursors ‘Twist’ and the ‘Monkey’. It can be done solo or with a partner. Since then, many songs have promoted and made use of jerk dance. Recently some songs have been sung especially to revive this dance form. (e.g ‘You are a jerk’ by New Boys, ‘Teach me How to Jerk’ by Audio Push).

To jerk, you will need:

• A fun beat
• A lot of energy
• A partner, (if desired)

1. Stand with your feet apart. Face your partner if you have one.
2. Keep your knees bent, with your arms stretched wide up to the level of your face. This posture looks like you are beginning a fight.
3. Next, move forward to your left. Bob your head and cross your wrists at front of you simultaneously as you move and then open your arms wide.
4. Stand back straight with open arms. Move to your right and repeat steps: ‘Bob’; ‘Cross’ and ‘Open’ your arms again at the turn.
5. Repeat the same step, turning on each side. You can snap your fingers too while jerking forwards on each turn.
6. If there is a partner the two can do it simultaneously, standing face to face, moving and bobbing their heads towards each other on one turn then moving away from each other in the similar fashion.

Bobbing your head and sweeping your arms widely at every gesture of crossing and opening them, gives your dance a perfect jerk. Practicing dance in front of a mirror helps a lot. You can see yourself if you look like a ‘jerking monkey’ while dancing, which you should while doing the jerk.