What is the deal with the 'six-seven' craze and should parents worry?

It kicked off in a rap song, made its way into the popular TV show "South Park" and is now driving teachers in the US and UK up the wall as students randomly shout it out, reports The Guardian.

How did it blow up like this?

Name: Six-seven

Age: Less than a year

Appearance: Everywhere you look

So, what is the deal with six-seven? It is just six-seven. 

Is it some kind of secret code? Nope.

Is it a trendy way to describe someone in a state of chaos (At sixes and sevens is an idiom)? Definitely not.

So what does it actually mean? 

It is just something children today are shouting.

Is it in vogue to yell out two numbers in sequence? It is not just trendy – it is a plague, as The Guardian phrased it. Six-seven is causing headaches for teachers everywhere.

And why is that? Because it is infuriating. Picture this: you ask your students to flip to page 67, and they all yell, "Six-seven!" in response.

How '6-7' became the nonsense phrase disrupting US schools

But why are children doing that? Even they have no clue.

Surely, it has to have some kind of origin. Yes, but be warned: it is a lengthy tale, and honestly not that important.

What is its origin?

The term "six-seven," in its current usage, seems to have kicked off with Philadelphia rapper Skrilla's 2024 track "Doot Doot (6 7)," which may reference either a police radio code, 67th Street or something similar.

But it really blew up when the song got attached to video clips of NBA star LaMelo Ball, who conveniently stands at 6 feet 7 inches.

But we are not completely there yet.

Somewhere along the way, the phrase picked up a hand gesture: two upturned palms going up and down like they are weighing something.

So perhaps it hints at being average, like a six or a seven on a scale from one to 10? No. 

The term has exploded in the US to the point where it featured in last week's "South Park" episode, in which it triggers a moral panic.

And now it is infiltrating UK classrooms? Apparently so. And that is the end of the six-seven saga.

That was long and utterly pointless. It is just a meme slang that signifies nothing more than the typical 13-year-old's knack for being annoying while relentlessly beating a dead horse.

What can teachers do about it?

Some teachers have put a ban on it, while others are weaving six-seven into their lessons.

One can assume it will pass soon. If adults are discussing it, then it is already fading.