This year, Gen Alpha entered high school. But according to Graham Getlin (9), who was born in 2010, many Gen Alpha students distance themselves from their own generation.
Gen Alpha encompasses those born between the years 2010-2025, while Gen Z encompasses those born between 1995-2009.
According to Graham, Gen Alpha is typically associated with using Internet slang that he doesn’t use.
“I think a lot of people [don’t associate with Gen Alpha], especially freshmen who were born in 2010, because we are so close to Gen Z,” Graham said. “People in Gen Alpha say things we wouldn’t say. When we’re put in the same generation as them, it makes us feel weird.”
According to Urban Dictionary, some terms unique to Gen Alpha include ‘skibbidi,’ ‘rizzler,’ and ‘sigma.’
Since many freshmen don’t use these words, Graham believes the cutoff between generations should be two years below him.
“[When we were in 8th grade] the sixth graders were on their own level…They were saying the ‘skidbidi toilet’ and ‘rizz.’ That’s where the division of generations is, I think, because [freshmen] and the grade below us are more Gen Z than Gen Alpha,” Graham said.
Allison Ralph (10), who was born in 2009 and identifies as Gen Z, said she sometimes uses Gen Alpha slang as a joke but finds that once she starts using it, it can become hard to stop. However, she said she wouldn’t use the slang in a serious conversation.
According to Graham, many Gen Alpha students have used technology, such as iPads, since 5th grade. He said this early technology use is a major factor in the slang differences since much of the slang is derived from Internet culture.
He added that there is less interpersonal connection in his grade due to this technology use.
“I think we definitely go on our phones more than the other grades. Everyone just sits on technology— especially at my lunch table, none of us talk to each other,” Graham said. “Everyone is just watching TikTok and YouTube. We don’t really have face-to-face conversations.”
The impacts of the lack of interpersonal connection have raised concerns among some Internet
users.
According to Oxford University Press, the word ‘brain rot’ is used to describe the perceived danger of the overconsumption of media that is considered “low-quality and low-value” on mental and intellectual states.
According to the Oxford University Press, this content includes the “Skibbidi Toilet” video series and “Only in Ohio” memes. These types of media lead to much of the slang, which is known as brain rot language. Brain rot was the Oxford Word of the Year in 2024.
In addition to brain rot, Arya Vaswani (10) feels that this high access to technology has led to Gen Alpha kids engaging in certain activities earlier in their lives than previous generations.
“When I was in elementary school, I would play outside, but now I see kids [that age] on their phones or playing Roblox… they do things that teens and older kids would do,” Vaswani said.
According to Graham, “cell hotel” enforcement is strong among the freshman classes due to their strong attachment to their phones. On the other hand, his older brother Micah Getlin (12), who was born in 2006, felt that in his classes the cell hotel policy has been more lenient.Micah believes that the pandemic is largely correlated to the freshmen’s technology attachment.
“[Gen Alpha] spent important years like 5th and 6th grade, when they should’ve been building relationships [like seniors] were able to, over technology and over Zoom,” Micah said.