School pupils across the UK have been shouting out “six-seven” during lessons in the latest meme-based trend. Teachers report varying approaches, from ignoring the disruption to using humour to defuse it.
James, a secondary school teacher in north London, deliberately mentions the phrase to kill the craze. “Nothing deflates a craze like this more emphatically than an adult trying to join in,” he said. He first encountered it when his year 11 tutor group laughed at his mention of grades six and seven.
Connor, a 39-year-old history teacher at a London comprehensive, treats “six-seven” like any other disruption. “If you give oxygen to it, then it becomes an inferno,” he said. He avoids accidental mentions, such as “6, 7 million unemployed people in Germany in 1933”, and relies on a strong behaviour policy.
Jane, a primary school teacher in north-west England in her early 50s, has banned the phrase in her classroom. She sees it as a bonding chant for children. “These crazes last for three or four weeks,” she said. “This craze will die out soon – they always do.”
Other teachers, like a 24-year-old English teacher, choose to ignore it or laugh along. The trend follows previous memes such as “9 + 10 = 21” and “Skibidi toilet”, and educators expect it to fade naturally as pupils move on to the next fad.
