Smithton eighth-grader helps younger students, including girl whose mother died

Smithton eighth-grader Anna Miller has a gentle demeanor and a natural kindness that moves her to help younger students at her school.

“I love helping out in the kindergarten rooms,” Anna said, who helps resolve conflicts there, especially line-cutting.

She might have learned a thing or two about that from her brother, Timothy, 8.

“He’s probably a big influence because he helps with my patience,” Anna said. “He’s a good kid, though, super encouraging and very positive.”

Anna won the Racial Harmony Award for Smithton School and will be honored at the Illinois Principal Association Student Recognition Breakfast on April 20. Anna and her good friend, Grace Shaw, were honored by the Do The Right Thing organization earlier this year, as well.

“I really can’t say enough about how Anna has impacted our students and the school,” Principal Vicki Norton said. “She is a rare find.”

“I like to make people feel good about themselves,” Anna said.

Anna and her friend Grace Shaw saw an opportunity earlier this year to help first-grader Charlotte Martin, whose mother died suddenly in November. They knew of Charlotte, whom Anna called “a tippy-toe walker,” from seeing her around the 530-student school. One day, the older girls saw Charlotte coloring with a school counselor.

“We can step in and do that,” Anna said. And they did. The girls color with Charlotte once a week for 20 minutes or so, and Anna makes up stories with dragons and unicorns to supplement the drawings.

Q: How do you get younger kids to stop fighting and make up?

A: “Usually I have them talk to each other, and say what’s wrong. (I tell them) we’re all friends, so everyone can work together. What’s the problem? Have them say ‘sorry,’ usually have them high five or knuckle punch, then they just go about their business.”

Q: What’s the typical problem for younger kids?

A: “Line cutting.”

Q: And for older kids?

A: “In eighth grade, for boys, it’s rowdiness. With girls, it’s more that we don’t have big fights ... talking behind others’ backs.”

Q: You said you want to be a pediatrician. Why?

A: “Because I really enjoy working with kids, I invest a lot of my time working with kids. Being at Children’s Hospital (she was there for a knee infection) was super inspiring. They made it seem like a great place. Everybody was so encouraging and nice, and it seems like a really fun atmosphere to work in.”

Q: Are you excited to go to high school?

A: “I really don’t want to go to high school. (She will attend Freeburg High.) I do, but I keep telling myself, ‘There’s no kids there; you’re going to be the youngest there.’”

This story was originally published April 5, 2016 at 10:04 AM with the headline "Smithton eighth-grader helps younger students, including girl whose mother died."