6-7 meme celebrated as some Long Island schools mark 67th day of instruction

The viral phrase "6-7" that’s exploded among younger generations is being embraced in some Long Island classrooms — with elementary schools across the Island marking their 67th day of school this week with playful takes on the expression that shows no sign of going away.

For those who don’t know what 6-7 and its accompanying juggling hand gesture means, don’t worry. It doesn’t signify much. Just ask students celebrating "6-7 Day" at the Levittown district's East Broadway Elementary School on Wednesday.

“I don’t know," third grader Wren Price, 9, admitted when asked what she thought it meant. "It's just something silly. It’s just a funny joke.”

The popular phrase started as an internet trend, with some speculating the numbers came from rapper Skrilla’s 2024 song, “Doot Doot (6-7),"  after the song took off on social media. Then in a video that went viral this year and spawned memes, a boy at a basketball game yelled the term while juggling his hands, as a kid next to him did the same.

Dictionary.com designated it as the word of the year after finding that online searches for the term began increasing this summer. "Perhaps the most defining feature of 67 is that it’s impossible to define,” the website said, noting it could mean “so-so,” or “maybe this, maybe that.”

Wherever it came from, and whatever it means, it's appeal among young people has been undeniable.

Educators at East Broadway Elementary in Seaford said the expression really took off for students this academic year. Principal Jordan Margolis said educators ultimately decided, “It would be better to join them instead of fight against it."

In some instances, that has meant letting kids say the phrase if they listen in class. Other teachers have incorporated it into their lessons, Margolis said.

Some schools across Long Island have taken it a step further this week, as many districts celebrated their 67th day of instruction. 

At East Broadway Elementary Wednesday, students wore paper crowns decorated with the numbers on them. In Amanda Causeman-Pannulla’s second grade class, students had until the end of the day to complete 67 acts of kindness. In a third grade class, students had to scribble down 67 compliments.

And in Lauren Russo’s fifth grade class, five groups of students tested their luck against — what else? — a 67-second timer. How many paper balls could they fling into a plastic cup? Could they stack cups into a pyramid before time ran out? What about disguising the ubiquitous numbers in a drawing?

Wednesday was about engaging “the students in ways that are interesting to them, and I think they're really loving it so far,” Assistant Principal Jessica Marciano said. “The children were just so into it this year.”

Other schools celebrated earlier this week. Second graders at Cordello Avenue Elementary School in Central Islip made hats and Christmas dioramas, and incorporated the numbers into math problems and writing projects Tuesday.

Jennifer Goncalves, a second grade teacher, said that even if students' 6-7 good-natured outbursts sometimes reached the point of annoyance this year, it was important “to capitalize on this while we have it, because it’s not guaranteed that we'll have it next year.”

The celebrations will continue on Thursday, when educators at Santapogue Elementary School in West Babylon plan to surprise students with 6-7 day themed math, literacy and STEM challenges.

Back at East Broadway Elementary, second grader Lucas St. John, 7, didn't skip a beat when asked what the 6-7 school festivities mean for him: “My whole life. It’s special," he said.