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Throughout the UK, students have been shouting out the phrase “sixseven” during lessons in the latest viral craze to take over schools.

While some educators have opted to patiently overlook the craze, others have embraced it. A group of instructors describe how they’re coping.

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

During September, I had been talking to my year 11 class about getting ready for their secondary school examinations in June. I don’t recall precisely what it was in reference to, but I said words similar to “ … if you’re aiming for marks six, seven …” and the complete classroom erupted in laughter. It surprised me totally off guard.

My immediate assumption was that I had created an hint at an offensive subject, or that they detected a quality in my accent that seemed humorous. Slightly annoyed – but honestly intrigued and mindful that they had no intention of being mean – I asked them to clarify. Frankly speaking, the explanation they then gave failed to create greater understanding – I still had minimal understanding.

What might have made it extra funny was the weighing-up motion I had executed while speaking. I have since found out that this typically pairs with ““67”: My purpose was it to assist in expressing the process of me thinking aloud.

In order to end the trend I aim to bring it up as much as I can. No strategy deflates a phenomenon like this more emphatically than an adult attempting to participate.

‘Providing attention fuels the fire’

Being aware of it aids so that you can steer clear of just accidentally making statements like “indeed, there were 6, 7 million jobless individuals in Germany in 1933”. In cases where the digit pairing is unpreventable, possessing a strong classroom conduct rules and requirements on student conduct proves beneficial, as you can address it as you would any additional interruption, but I rarely needed to implement that. Rules are necessary, but if learners accept what the educational institution is doing, they will become better concentrated by the viral phenomena (especially in class periods).

With 67, I haven’t lost any lesson time, except for an occasional raised eyebrow and commenting ““correct, those are digits, good job”. Should you offer focus on it, it evolves into a wildfire. I handle it in the same way I would handle any different disturbance.

Earlier occurred the 9 + 10 = 21 trend a previous period, and undoubtedly there will emerge a new phenomenon after this. It’s what kids do. During my own youth, it was performing Kevin and Perry impersonations (truthfully outside the school environment).

Young people are unforeseeable, and I think it falls to the teacher to react in a way that steers them toward the course that will help them where they need to go, which, with luck, is completing their studies with certificates rather than a conduct report a mile long for the use of random numbers.

‘They want to feel a part of a group’

Young learners use it like a unifying phrase in the recreation area: a pupil shouts it and the other children answer to demonstrate they belong to the same group. It’s similar to a verbal exchange or a stadium slogan – an agreed language they share. I believe it has any particular importance to them; they simply understand it’s a thing to say. Regardless of what the latest craze is, they seek to be included in it.

It’s forbidden in my teaching space, however – it results in a caution if they shout it out – similar to any additional verbal interruption is. It’s notably challenging in maths lessons. But my students at primary level are nine to 10-year-olds, so they’re quite accepting of the regulations, whereas I recognize that at teen education it could be a different matter.

I have worked as a teacher for 15 years, and such trends persist for a few weeks. This craze will fade away shortly – they always do, particularly once their younger siblings commence repeating it and it ceases to be cool. Subsequently they will be engaged with the subsequent trend.

‘You just have to laugh with them’

I first detected it in August, while teaching English at a international school. It was primarily male students repeating it. I educated ages 12 to 18 and it was widespread among the younger pupils. I didn’t understand what it was at the time, but as a young adult and I understood it was merely a viral phenomenon similar to when I was a student.

Such phenomena are continuously evolving. ““Skibidi” was a familiar phenomenon at the time when I was at my educational institute, but it failed to appear as frequently in the classroom. In contrast to ““sixseven”, ““the skibidi trend” was never written on the whiteboard in class, so pupils were less able to pick up on it.

I typically overlook it, or periodically I will laugh with them if I unintentionally utter it, striving to understand them and understand that it’s simply youth culture. I think they merely seek to enjoy that sensation of belonging and friendship.

‘Playfully shouting it means I rarely hear it now’

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