How to use youth slang without sounding cringe to students
Teachers who try to connect with students using current slang risk awkwardness, being grossed out by terms like glaze, or facing severe social blowback like getting called a furry. This fear of misusing or overstepping youthful boundaries stops educators from engaging with student culture altogether.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Having students teach the teacher the slang words they use on a daily basis
- 2Fire back with a mundane name or the student's name
- 3Play complete ignorance of the culture and ask them to explain what they mean
- 4Use the situation as an educational opportunity to discuss labels and bullying
- 5Choose a completely different costume or avoid dressing up
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“But the reason I am hesitant, and asking this subreddit for advice, is because of one thing: getting called a furry.”source ↗
“If it’s even a question, don’t do it.”source ↗
“They will call you a furry no matter what animal you dress as.”source ↗
“I’m an 8th grade teacher and I want to make fun vocabulary sentences for them. I know some of their… language ? Idk.”source ↗
“I don’t wanna hear skibidi toilet LOL”source ↗
“'Glaze' is pretty common but disgusts me.”source ↗
“Such a disgusting origin for it to come out of an 11 year olds mouth.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
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