"Criss-cross apple sauce"

[David T. Shaw]

As a substitute teacher I have heard Kindergarten and primary grade teachers use this phrase. It is used for a 'stop fidgeting' (or sometimes more like 'stop climbing the walls') technique.

[Valkyrie]

I'm familiar with it as well. But for me, I remember it also being used when we were all sitting in a circle, and the teacher didn't want our legs sticking out everywhere. Keeps circles neat and clean-looking.

[The Dude]

I thought it was just a not-racist way of staying "Indian style". Honestly, I don't know why that somehow caught on instead of "pretzel style".

[lemma]

I thought it was just a not-racist way of staying "Indian style". Honestly, I don't know why that somehow caught on instead of "pretzel style".

Haven't you ever seen applesauce? there's an uncanny resemblance.

[crayzz]

Yeah, it's a thing said to children to get them to sit still. It's not really gendered IME, except so far as "sitting still" is gendered.

(On a semi related note, it's similar to "quiet hands" except "quiet hands" is way, waayyy creepier.)

[irilyth]

I thought it was just a not-racist way of staying "Indian style". Honestly, I don't know why that somehow caught on instead of "pretzel style".

That's how I've heard it used by my kids' teachers (they're almost-8 and almost-5), and not at all as a modesty thing, nor gendered at all. (That kind of cross-legged isn't a particularly modest position, e.g. if you're wearing a short skirt.)