Barrington fifth-grader's essay takes 1st at state DAR competition
Written as a letter to her brother during the Revolutionary War, character Sarah Matherson describes how her life has changed since her brother left their farm to fight the British. She finds herself taking on his chores, has less time for school, and feeds and cares for patriot soldiers that pass by the farm.
Christina Miller, a fifth-grader at Grove Avenue School in Barrington, wrote the essay which was entered in the annual Daughters of the American Revolution American History Essay Contest, hosted by the Signal Hill Chapter DAR.
Judged for historical context, adherence to the theme "The Lives of Children During the American Revolution," grammar and originality, Christina's 482-word essay took first place in her division during the Feb. 15 awards ceremony in Barrington.
The essay was then submitted to the District IV contest comprised of 28 area chapters. Christina's essay was chosen as the fifth-grade winner and was automatically entered in the Illinois State contest, where she once again took first place. Now, she will compete at the regional level, and if successful, the national level.
"I enjoyed writing the essay because I got to see what it would be like to be a child in the Revolutionary War," Christina said. "I learned that life was very different and difficult compared to today."
"This is a proud moment for our chapter," said Joyce Wright, Signal Hill Chapter historian.
At the local level elementary school competition in February, 39 students from eight schools were honored, with the other first-place awards going to sixth-grader Ryan Miller from Wauconda Middle School, seventh-grader Audrey Taillon from Barrington Middle School Station Campus, and eighth-grader Hannah Kirkpatrick from Lake Zurich Middle School North.
The chapter also gave out a Good Citizen award for high school seniors.
The nominees were Caroline Hutton from Dundee-Crown High School and Jena Heck from Wauconda High School.
Both girls had to submit information about their achievements and write an essay on how one's personal heritage affects one's duties to our nation. Three independent judges reviewed the material and selected Caroline as the winner.
"We are so proud of all of the children who participated in this year's contest," Wright said.
For more information, visit www.ildar.org/chapters/signalhill/Welcome.html.