Model trains will be on display and for sale at the Peoria Train Fair, Nov. 18 at Illinois Central College in East Peoria.

STATE

New formula to measure student achievement

The annual Illinois School Report Cards being released this week will reflect a new formula for measuring achievement of students in kindergarten to eighth grade.

The State Board of Education has updated its system for reporting school performance by assigning each public school a rating that sums up its performance based on multiple indicators.

The school report cards will continue to report the percentages of students meeting or exceeding expectations, or who fall into other categories. But rather than focus solely these percentages, the new formula for K-8 schools will now emphasize students’ academic gains. The formula will employ an accountability system that speaks to the effectiveness of instruction.

For the 2018 report cards, the state board is using the framework of the federal Every Student Succeeds Act, which replaced the No Child Left Behind law in late 2015. Every Student Succeeds establishes a 15-year timeline for achieving four academic goals.

The goals state that by 2032, at least 90 percent of third-grade students should be reading at or above grade level and 90 percent or more of fifth-grade students should meet or exceed expectations in math. At the high school level, 90 percent or more of ninth-grade students should be on track to graduate with their class and 90 percent or more of students should graduate from high school ready for college and career.

CENTRAL ILLINOIS

Train fair at ICC Nov. 18

The Peoria Train Fair will pull into the Illinois Central College East Peoria campus on schedule, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Nov. 18. The fair will show off the latest model train products and will have experts who can answer attendees’ questions. 

The operating layouts return to the Train Fair this year courtesy of the River City Model Railroad Club, giving attendees an idea of what is possible in model railroading. Run a Train returns, which will give children the opportunity to take turns as engineers and run selected trains.

DVDs, videos, books, and photos, as well as many model railroad parts and supplies will be available. Tables will also highlight new and used items from most scales including Lionel, G, O, HO, N and Z. Real railroad memorabilia will be available including clothing, such as hats, shirts, patches and pins.  

All proceeds will support the Illinois Valley Model Railroad Club in Peoria and River City Model Railroad Club in Pekin and their efforts to highlight and promote the hobby of model railroading.

The fair is sponsored by the two clubs. Admission is $3 for adults. Children 12 and under will be admitted free when accompanied by an adult. 

COUNTY

Workshop looks at effect of trauma in children

Tazewell County Health Department’s Lunch & Learn program offers a series of free workshops that focus on the betterment of children and families.

The next Lunch & Learn Workshop will be held from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Nov. 9 at Faith Lutheran Child Care Center, 650 School St., Washington. The topic will be trauma-informed care. Presenter Rob Hittmeier, COO of Lincoln Prairie Behavioral Health Center, will focus on the history of post-traumatic stress disorder, understanding the impact of trauma and treatment interventions and more. 

The workshop is open to anyone. The registration deadline for the next one is Nov. 7. For more information or to register, contact Julie Herzog by calling 309-929-0266 or sending an email to jherzog@tchd.net.

So far, the 2019 workshops for January, March and May will be about Wounded Places/PTSD on children, Adverse Childhood Experiences, and Brain Architecture/Development. The meetings are set in various places in Tazewell County. The format is lunch first, followed by the presentation.

PEKIN

Historic film to be shown at library

The Pekin Public Library is continuing its 2018 movie series celebrating the Illinois Bicentennial with local Pekin and Tazewell County history. Movies are shown at 11 a.m. on the first Friday of every month on the large movie screen in the library’s Community Room.

The next film, “Old Tharp Burials 1988,” will be shown Nov. 2. It shows anthropologist Alan Hern of Dixon Mounds digging graves at Douglas School, formerly the old Tharp burial grounds. Admission is free.

–Tazewell County News Briefs–