To find the area of the smallest square when Anna cuts a rectangular piece of paper into five square pieces, we first need to determine the dimensions of the rectangle.

Given that the perimeter of the rectangle is 88 cm, we can use the formula for the perimeter of a rectangle:

\[
P = 2(l + w)
\]

where \( l \) is the length and \( w \) is the width.

So we have:

\[
2(l + w) = 88
\]
\[
l + w = 44 \quad \text{(1)}
\]

From the diagram, it seems that one side of the rectangle has 4 squares of equal size along one edge and one square of smaller size, which indicates the presence of varying dimensions for the squares.

Let’s assume the size of the smallest square is \( s \) cm.

Thus, if we denote the size of the larger square (the one that occupies the upper part of the rectangle) as \( S \), the rectangle can be represented as:

1. Height of the rectangle: \( S \)
2. Width of the rectangle: \( 4s \)

Now, we can express the dimensions of the rectangle in terms of \( s \) and \( S \):

\[
l = 4s \quad \text{and} \quad w = S
\]

Substituting into equation (1):

\[
4s + S = 44 \quad \text{(2)}
\]

To find the area of the smallest square, we need to ensure that the squares fit within the rectangle. The largest square \( S \) must be equal to \( s \) (the smaller square), meaning \( S \) can also be expressed as \( s \) when designing the rectangle accordingly.

Now, substituting \( S = s \) into equation (2):

\[
4s + s = 44
\]
\[
5s = 44
\]
\[
s = \frac{44}{5} = 8.8 \text{ cm}
\]

Now, to find the area of the smallest square:

\[
\text{Area} = s^2 = (8.8)^2 = 77.44 \text{ cm}^2
\]

So, the area of the smallest square is **77.44 cm²**.