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Throughout the UK, learners have been shouting out the phrase ““six-seven” during lessons in the most recent viral phenomenon to sweep across classrooms.

Whereas some instructors have chosen to stoically ignore the phenomenon, others have embraced it. Five teachers explain how they’re dealing.

‘My initial assumption was that I’d uttered something offensive’

During September, I had been talking to my year 11 tutor group about getting ready for their secondary school examinations in June. I don’t recall precisely what it was in connection with, but I said something like “ … if you’re working to grades six, seven …” and the whole class erupted in laughter. It caught me completely by surprise.

My first thought was that I had created an allusion to an inappropriate topic, or that they detected an element of my speech pattern that appeared amusing. A bit exasperated – but honestly intrigued and conscious that they had no intention of being hurtful – I asked them to explain. Frankly speaking, the explanation they then gave failed to create significant clarification – I remained with no idea.

What could have caused it to be extra funny was the weighing-up motion I had performed during speaking. I have since found out that this often accompanies ““67”: My purpose was it to aid in demonstrating the action of me thinking aloud.

In order to kill it off I try to reference it as often as I can. No strategy reduces a phenomenon like this more thoroughly than an grown-up striving to participate.

‘Providing attention fuels the fire’

Understanding it helps so that you can steer clear of just unintentionally stating remarks like “indeed, there were 6, 7 million jobless individuals in Germany in 1933”. In cases where the numerical sequence is inevitable, maintaining a rock-solid classroom conduct rules and requirements on student conduct proves beneficial, as you can address it as you would any different disruption, but I rarely had to do that. Rules are necessary, but if students accept what the school is practicing, they will become less distracted by the internet crazes (particularly in instructional hours).

With six-seven, I haven’t wasted any instructional minutes, except for an occasional quizzical look and commenting ““correct, those are digits, good job”. Should you offer focus on it, then it becomes an inferno. I treat it in the same way I would handle any different disturbance.

Earlier occurred the 9 + 10 = 21 craze a few years ago, and there will no doubt be a different trend after this. That’s children’s behavior. When I was youth, it was doing comedy characters impressions (truthfully away from the school environment).

Children are unforeseeable, and I think it’s the educator’s responsibility to respond in a approach that redirects them back to the direction that will enable them to their educational goals, which, hopefully, is completing their studies with qualifications instead of a disciplinary record a mile long for the employment of random numbers.

‘Students desire belonging to a community’

The children employ it like a connecting expression in the schoolyard: a pupil shouts it and the other children answer to demonstrate they belong to the same group. It resembles a interactive chant or a football chant – an shared vocabulary they share. In my view it has any particular meaning to them; they simply understand it’s a trend to say. No matter what the latest craze is, they desire to feel part of it.

It’s prohibited in my classroom, however – it results in a caution if they shout it out – similar to any different calling out is. It’s particularly challenging in mathematics classes. But my pupils at year 5 are children aged nine to ten, so they’re fairly adherent to the rules, while I recognize that at secondary [school] it may be a different matter.

I have worked as a educator for a decade and a half, and these phenomena persist for a month or so. This trend will die out in the near future – they always do, particularly once their junior family members start saying it and it stops being fashionable. Afterward they shall be focused on the subsequent trend.

‘Sometimes joining the laughter is necessary’

I started noticing it in August, while educating in English language at a foreign language school. It was mostly boys saying it. I educated students from twelve to eighteen and it was common within the junior students. I was unaware its meaning at the time, but I’m 24 years old and I understood it was simply an internet trend similar to when I attended classes.

The crazes are continuously evolving. “Skibidi toilet” was a familiar phenomenon during the period when I was at my teacher preparation program, but it failed to exist as much in the educational setting. In contrast to “six-seven”, ““that particular meme” was never written on the whiteboard in lessons, so pupils were less able to pick up on it.

I typically overlook it, or occasionally I will laugh with them if I inadvertently mention it, attempting to relate to them and understand that it’s merely youth culture. I think they just want to experience that feeling of togetherness and companionship.

‘Lighthearted usage has diminished its occurrence’

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