Six of the best

Six of the best is a phrase that refers to a (chiefly British) method of corporal punishment.

Method

"Six of the best" was a classic punishment for boys. Six strokes or "cuts" are delivered with a cane onto the delinquent's buttocks. The punishment could be given either on the seat of the trousers or shorts, on the briefs, or on the bare bottom. The classic position for "six of the best" was touching one's toes or grabbing one's ankles, so that the victim was bent right over. The delinquent was told to assume this position and to remain still while the punishment was delivered. The caner stood to his side and swung the cane in a swishing horizontal movement.

After the caning, the boy was told to rise and to return to his seat. This method of corporal punishment was both formal and quick (perhaps half a minute including getting in and out of position) and was therefore a preferred method for school corporal punishment.

Why six?

Generally, even numbers are preferred whenever an exact number of strokes are given. Popular numbers are 6, 10, 12, 20, 24, 40, etc. Canes are very painful implements and therefore the number of strokes did not need to be high. Six - half a dozen - was thought to be the ideal number for schoolboys, provided that the offence was not major, in which case a longer caning or birching may have been given. "Of the best" meant that the six cuts were given with enough force to cause a good sting.

Normally the six cuts were given over both bottom cheeks (since boys' bottoms are small), so that they were not given as three-and-three but as six equal lines over both cheeks. An experienced caner could deliver the six cuts so precisely that the result was six parallel marks on the boy's bottom that did not overlap or cross. But it was also known that in some cases, while the first 5 might be delivered in such a parallel method, but the last was deliberately brought down to cross as many of their previous strokes as possible. This was done to increase the level of the punishment

Spanking terms, types and categories
By type	Bastinado • Beat • Birching • Blow • Caning • Crescendo principle • Cropping • Disciplinary spanking • Erotic Spanking • Falaka • Flagellation • Hand-spanking (Smacking) • Hit • Lash • Lick • Paddling • Pat • Sensual spanking • Slap • Smack • Spank • Spanking game • Strike • Stroke • Strapping • Swat • Switching • Tantra erotic spanking • Tawsing • Therapeutic spanking • Types of spanking • Undeserved spanking • Whipping
Phrases, Terms & Slang	Beating • Cut • Five barred gate • Hiding • Licking • Good spanking • Mutual spanking • Six of the best • Slapping • Spankee • Spanker • Spanking • Spanking terms • Swishing • Thrashing • Trading licks • Walloping • Whack • Whacking • Whale • Whooping
Techniques / Methods:	Bondage before spanking • Butt plugging or figging • Corner time before and after • Crescendo principle • Hard start • How to spank a slave • Ice cubes • Layer cake method • Long spanking • Pre-punishment cool-down time • Round Robin spanking • Six of the best • Tapping before each spank • Therapeutic spanking
Around the World	Spanking in other languages • Category:Spanking terms

List of Spanking Implements

Flat spanking implements

bath brush (wooden or plastic)
belt
bimmy
cooking spatula (wooden or plastic)
dough scraper (rubber or silicone)
flyswatter
hairbrush (wooden or plastic)
leather paddle
Newspaper
paddle (wooden paddle)
ping-pong paddle
ruler (wooden or plastic)
slapper/flapper
slipper / Plimsoll
strap / Strop
tawse
wooden spoon

Stick-like spanking implements

Other spanking implements

Whipping implements include

Some spanking implements produce more "sting" while others produce more "thud".
See "sting and thud" for more on this distinction.

Spanking positions
Assume the position Bending over Bending over back of chair position Bent-over position Bent-over-object position Bongo position Diaper position Frontal over-the-lap position Grabbing-ankles position Half-standing position Hands-behind-back position Hands-on-knees position Hands-on-head position Handstand position Head-between-legs position Horsed position Knee-chest position Kneeling position Kneeling-in-a-chair position Leaning position Lunge position Lying position Objectives of spanking positions On-all-fours position Over the lap Over two laps Over-one-knee position Over-the-knee position Plow position reverse chair position Side-of-bed position Sitting-with-bottom-out position Spanking position Spread legs Spreadeagle Standing on one leg Standing position Standing-between-legs position Straddling position Touching-toes position Tucked-under-the-arm position Two spankees OTK Underarm position Waist-between-legs position

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Six of the best

Method

Why six?

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