+
upworthy
Pop Culture

Teacher shares Smashing Pumpkins song with sixth graders and they hilariously roast it

"This reminds me of depression."

90s music, smashing pumpkins
@johnfishman8/TikTok

“It’s giving summer and cool kids.”

Nothing says “you’re old” quite like the foundations of your once hip and trendy music tastes being dubbed nostalgic.

But hey, Jon Fishman is making the best of it. The middle school teacher started a TikTok account dedicated to playing chart-topping 80s and 90s tunes for his sixth graders and getting their candid, hilarious and often brutal responses.

So far, the playlist has included hits like “Heart of Glass” by Blondie (which is “good” but “very old person music,” apparently), that “so-so” and “kinda disco but also western” Andy Gibb classic, “(Love is) Thicker Than Water” and Red Hot Chili Peppers’ “Soul to Squeeze,” aka “trash in a good way.”

But by far the song with the biggest response and the most views on TikTok goes to “1979" by The Smashing Pumpkins.

ICYMI (i.e., in case you weren’t alive in the late 90s), “1979” is one of The Smashing Pumpkins’ most highly acclaimed songs, even earning the band a Grammy nomination for Record of the Year in 1997.

Does Fishman’s class care about the accolades? No, definitely not.

@jonfishman8 6th grade vs. the ‘90s #6thgradeteacher #teachersoftiktok #genx #musicfromthe90s #smashingpumpkins #billycorgan #music #middleschool #period4 #period6 #alternative #indie #rock ♬ 1979 - The Smashing Pumpkins

“It reminds me of depression,” one student wrote. Which, not gonna lie, isn’t inaccurate.

“Very cringe, sounds old,” wrote another. Ouch.

Another wrote that the song had “nothing to do with smashing pumpkins.” This complaint understandably drew a lot of laughs from TikTok viewers.

Still, not every comment was savage. A few students complimented the song for its “good beat” and being “very chill.”

One even went so far as to say, “It’s giving summer and cool kids.”

And perhaps the biggest, sweetest most adorable compliment of all:

“It is the bestest song in the whole wide world. My mommy and daddy listen to it.”

Fishman’s makeshift series is drawing a big fanbase, and viewers are already bidding for more “nostalgic” bands like Radiohead, Pearl Jam and The Ramones, just to name a few.

If you want to see what pops up next on the playlist, follow Mr. Fishman's TikTok here.

Education

A school assignment asked for 3 benefits of slavery. This kid gave the only good answer.

The school assignment was intended to spark debate and discussion — but isn't that part of the problem?

A school assignment asked for 3 "good" reasons for slavery.



It's not uncommon for parents to puzzle over their kids' homework.

Sometimes, it's just been too long since they've done long division for them to be of any help. Or teaching methods have just changed too dramatically since they were in school.

And other times, kids bring home something truly inexplicable.
Keep ReadingShow less


Teacher Bret Turner thought he'd kick off the morning with his first-grade students using a little riddle.

On the whiteboard in the front of the class, he scrawled it out in black marker:

"I am the beginning of everything, the end of everywhere. I'm the beginning of eternity, the end of time & space."

One student raised their hand, the first to venture a guess.

Keep ReadingShow less
Identity

Non-Americans are sharing the ‘dead giveaway’ someone is American and they are pretty right

The dead giveaway is when they call me "honey" or "sweetie" or "darling."

via Flickr, Flickr, and Flickr

Three American tourists enjoying the sights.

One of the most interesting things about traveling the world is noticing how people from your country are a bit different from the place you’re visiting. In America, you’re mostly around fellow countrymen so it’s hard to notice the things that make us stand out.

But when you travel abroad, you quickly notice that no matter how hard you try to blend in, there are a lot of dead giveaways that show people you’re from the states that go way beyond your accent.

Keep ReadingShow less
Parenting

Teenage girl shamed for her ‘distracting’ outfit fights back in a very funny way

“[Because] she has a figure she was told she had to change.”

Photo from Facebook page.

A clever message written on her T-shirt.

A Lawton, Oklahoma, student who goes by the Facebook user name Rose Lynn had the last laugh after being sent home from school for wearing an outfit deemed "distracting." Rose Lynn believes her outfit attracted the attention of school officials because of her figure.

She proved it by posting a photo on Facebook of her modest outfit, which consisted of black leggings, a t-shirt, long cardigan, and boots. In her post, she wrote that she was sent home "because I'm developed farther than the average girl my age," and because she's a "CURVY woman." Rose Lynn also thinks the appropriate response shouldn't have been to tell her to cover up, but to teach boys to "to respect the boundaries of young ladies."

Keep ReadingShow less
Science

She tattooed half her face and you'd never know it. Her skills are just that good.

This incredible medical tattoo technology is giving renewed hope to burn victims.

All images via the CBS/YouTube

Basma Hameed runs a tattoo shop, of sorts...


Meet Samira Omar.

The 17-year-old was the victim of a horrific bullying incident.

Keep ReadingShow less

Taylor Swift at 2022 Toronto International Film Festival Red Carpet Day 2.

The wordsmiths over at Merriam-Webster have announced their official “Word of the Year for 2023,” they say it’s something we are “thinking about, writing about, aspiring to, and judging more” than ever.

The word is authentic.

According to the dictionary, the most common definitions of authentic are “not false or imitation,” “being true to one's own personality, spirit, or character,” and “worthy of acceptance or belief as conforming to or based on fact.”

Merriam-Webster says the word saw a “substantial increase” in lookups this year. That’s probably because we now live in a world where artificial intelligence, deepfake technology and questionable memes challenge our basic notions of reality.

Keep ReadingShow less