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Throughout the UK, school pupils have been calling out the expression ““six-seven” during lessons in the most recent meme-based phenomenon to spread through classrooms.

Whereas some teachers have chosen to calmly disregard the phenomenon, others have embraced it. A group of teachers share how they’re managing.

‘I thought I had said something rude’

During September, I had been talking to my eleventh grade class about getting ready for their qualification tests in June. It escapes me precisely what it was in relation to, but I said something like “ … if you’re targeting marks six, seven …” and the whole class erupted in laughter. It took me totally off guard.

My first thought was that I might have delivered an allusion to an inappropriate topic, or that they perceived something in my speech pattern that appeared amusing. Somewhat frustrated – but genuinely curious and aware that they weren’t malicious – I asked them to explain. Honestly, the description they provided didn’t provide significant clarification – I continued to have minimal understanding.

What possibly caused it to be particularly humorous was the evaluating movement I had made while speaking. I have since found out that this typically pairs with ““67”: I meant it to help convey the process of me thinking aloud.

In order to kill it off I attempt to bring it up as often as I can. No approach deflates a trend like this more emphatically than an teacher attempting to get involved.

‘Providing attention fuels the fire’

Being aware of it aids so that you can prevent just blundering into remarks like “for example, there existed 6, 7 million unemployed people in Germany in 1933”. If the digit pairing is unpreventable, having a strong student discipline system and expectations on student conduct really helps, as you can address it as you would any different interruption, but I haven’t actually had to do that. Guidelines are necessary, but if students accept what the educational institution is practicing, they’ll be more focused by the viral phenomena (at least in class periods).

Regarding six-seven, I haven’t wasted any instructional minutes, aside from an occasional quizzical look and stating ““correct, those are digits, good job”. When you provide focus on it, then it becomes an inferno. I address it in the equivalent fashion I would manage any other disruption.

There was the nine plus ten equals twenty-one phenomenon a few years ago, and undoubtedly there will emerge a new phenomenon after this. That’s children’s behavior. During my own growing up, it was imitating Kevin and Perry impersonations (honestly away from the classroom).

Children are unforeseeable, and In my opinion it’s an adult’s job to behave in a manner that redirects them back to the path that will enable them to their educational goals, which, fingers crossed, is graduating with qualifications rather than a conduct report lengthy for the utilization of arbitrary digits.

‘They want to feel a part of a group’

The children employ it like a connecting expression in the schoolyard: one says it and the others respond to indicate they’re part of the equivalent circle. It’s like a call-and-response or a stadium slogan – an agreed language they possess. I don’t think it has any particular importance to them; they just know it’s a trend to say. No matter what the current trend is, they desire to be included in it.

It’s forbidden in my learning environment, however – it results in a caution if they call it out – identical to any different calling out is. It’s especially challenging in mathematics classes. But my class at fifth grade are children aged nine to ten, so they’re relatively compliant with the regulations, although I understand that at secondary [school] it might be a separate situation.

I have served as a educator for a decade and a half, and these crazes persist for three or four weeks. This trend will fade away in the near future – this consistently happens, especially once their younger siblings commence repeating it and it’s no longer fashionable. Subsequently they will be on to the subsequent trend.

‘Sometimes joining the laughter is necessary’

I started noticing it in August, while teaching English at a foreign language school. It was primarily male students saying it. I instructed students from twelve to eighteen and it was prevalent within the younger pupils. I was unaware what it was at the time, but I’m 24 years old and I realised it was simply an internet trend akin to when I was at school.

These trends are continuously evolving. ““Skibidi” was a well-known trend during the period when I was at my educational institute, but it didn’t particularly appear as frequently in the classroom. Differing from ““67”, ““that particular meme” was not inscribed on the chalkboard in class, so learners were less able to pick up on it.

I just ignore it, or periodically I will chuckle alongside them if I accidentally say it, trying to understand them and appreciate that it is just contemporary trends. I think they just want to experience that feeling of belonging and companionship.

‘Playfully shouting it means I rarely hear it now’

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