Excellent, response to the discussion. I do agree with you about the boys getting a kick out of skipping school. My interpretations cause me to lean toward mischievous, rather than rebellious, since they were in a pool hall and not driving drunk or fighting. The audio version of the poem was outstanding and how she emphasized the word “WE,” which captured each line about being cool after dropping out of school. What caused Gwendolyn Brooks to peer inside the pool hall? Matthew Koch, described Gwendolyn Brooks’ poem, as “Poetic strategy that explores childhood as a position from which to critique prevailing constructs of class and
