Over the last two years, middle school student Natalie Simmons has changed her community for the better. Tired of seeing cars speed down her residential street, Natalie convinced officials at city hall to put up more stop signs in her neighborhood. But she didn’t stop there. Natalie’s civic pride has also led her to volunteer every Saturday, picking up trash in the neighborhood park. Natalie uses her power as a citizen to improve the place where she lives.

Because she has younger brothers who play outside, middle school student Natalie Simmons wanted cars to stop speeding on her street. Due to her efforts, new stop signs were posted in her neighborhood. As a result, there have been fewer speeding cars.

Family meetings encourage fairness and help end fights.

My family has a good way to settle arguments—we hold family meetings. Any time there is a disagreement between family members, one of us can call a family meeting. At the meeting, we each share our side of the story and listen to each other’s ideas. We are careful not to choose sides during a family meeting. Instead, we focus on how to solve the problem and try to be as fair as possible. Most of the time, we all work together to resolve the conflict. Family meetings help us keep the peace.