Paired Texts > We Real Cool

by Gwendolyn Brooks 1960

We've identified these texts as great options for text pairings based on similar themes, literary devices, topic, or writing style. Supplement your lesson with one or more of these options and challenge students to compare and contrast the texts. To assign a paired text, click on the text to go to its page and click the "Assign Text" button there.

Sadie and Maud
Sadie and Maud
Gwendolyn Brooks

In Gwendolyn Brooks's poem "Sadie and Maud," two sisters lead very different lives due to the choices they have made.

Pair “We Real Cool” with “Sadie and Maud” and ask students to compare the two texts by Gwendolyn Brooks. What similar themes do these two poems explore? What tone does Brooks use to explore these themes?

9th Grade Poem
This Is Not a Small Voice
This Is Not a Small Voice
Sonia Sanchez

In Sonia Sanchez's poem "This Is Not a Small Voice," the speaker asserts the strength and love of a collective set of people.

Pair “We Real Cool” with “This Is Not a Small Voice” and ask students to discuss how the authors develop the speakers’ identities in the two texts. What qualities do they emphasize? How do the voices of both speakers within the texts contribute to the themes of the poems?

8th Grade Poem
We Are Wise
We Are Wise
Zetta Elliott

In "We Are Wise," a speaker explains what their community does to fight hate.

Pair “We Real Cool” with “We Are Wise” and ask students to discuss the repetition of the word “We.” How does it affect the tone of each poem? How does it affect the theme of each poem? Why do students think Zetta Elliott was inspired to model “We Are Wise” after “We Real Cool?”

8th Grade Poem