The “6, 7” Trend and What It Taught Me in My First Year Infants Class

 

Recently I started hearing two numbers drift through my classroom constantly. Six. Seven. It was happening during lining up, quiet moments, and sometimes right in the middle of my teaching. My five-year students would say it softly, then pause, waiting for a hand reaction. A few would giggle. Others would watch closely, and there would always be some sort of connection. I felt confused more than anything else. What is this? What is going on with these children? Is this some kind of game or a secret message? I then assumed it was some harmless counting game or something picked up at home. I had no idea it was part of a wider trend until my assistant teacher quietly told me it was something children were copying from online spaces.

What stood out to me first was not the sound itself but the timing. The phrase appeared at any time and under every circumstance both in my classroom and around my school. What stood out was how they all knew exactly what to do and say. The words had no meaning on their own. The shared reaction was the real goal.

According to my assistant, Miss Lee, this trend is gaining popularity with the older students and is trickling down to the five years old students throughout the school. It's a harmless phrase that serves no purpose; it's just a lingo. That explanation changed my approach. Once I understood it was copied behaviour rather than spontaneous play, I stopped guessing and started responding with intention.

Immediately, I began to ignored it and believed it would pass if I did not acknowledge it. Instead, it spread like wildfire! My silence actually created space for it to grow. What I realized was that ignoring it did not reduce the behaviour at all! The phrase had become a performance, and my reaction, either way, had given this behaviour more life.

What is finally working for me is removing the opportunity for the trend to thrive. This trend depends on empty space, peer attention and repetition. It shows up when they are waiting between tasks or chatter while working. For this week, especially, I have begun to focus on removing the waiting time, reducing chit chat while working and making sure that they are working with new materials, to peak their interest. Additionally, I am convinced that once the audience disappears, the behaviour will lose its purpose and slowly fade. 

Even today, while teaching the number seven, I asked, “What number comes after six?” during a math lesson, and one cheeky student tried to turn it into a joke. A few heads lifted. Eyes shifted toward me. They waited for a reaction. I gave none. I accepted the correct answer and continued the lesson. The moment passed. With less attention and stronger structure, the trend has less room to survive, and learning takes back its space.