CMS Course Selection Hub

COUNSELING
Our school counselors provide academic and social/emotional support to students and families. Each student is assigned a school counselor alphabetically according to last name. Parents, students and teachers may request meetings with their students’ counselor if they have a concern. Our school counselors have experience with a variety of issues which can impact students and families at this age. Some of these issues include: anxiety, depression, conflict, family changes, grief, anger, healthy relationships, communication, personal safety and academic struggles. If you or your child need more information about our counseling services, please call the counseling office at 952-975-7330.

HEALTH SERVICES
Our health services department is staffed by Health Services Paraprofessionals (HSP) and a Licensed School Nurse (LSN) who work together to meet the health needs of all students at CMS.  The Health Services team collaborates with educational and support services within the school and the community to promote student health for student achievement. The health services paraprofessional is certified in first aid and CPR providing immediate first aid and comfort to injured or ill students at the direction of the LSN.  The Licensed School Nurse is a registered nurse with a baccalaureate degree or higher and is licensed in public health and school nursing.

Licensed School Nurse

• Develop and supervise a system of first aid, illness management, emergency care and health related policies
• Assess, plan and document for students with health issues
• Provide and plan the direct services for the chronically ill or medically fragile student needing health procedures
• Plan and provide for vision and hearing screening and do follow-up with referrals
• Serve as a resource to staff, students, families regarding health concerns and health education
• Coordinate prevention and control of communicable diseases as recommended by the Minnesota Department of Health
• Monitor immunizations compliance per MN immunization laws
• Have a baccalaureate or higher degree and are licensed in public health and school nursing

 

Health Services Paraprofessionals (HSP)

• Provide immediate first aid and comfort to injured students
• Provide care to students who become ill or have health concerns during the school day
• Maintain documentation of immunizations and other health issues as part of the health records
• Administers medications under the direction of the Licensed School Nurse
• Provide care to students with chronic medical conditions as delegated by the Licensed School Nurse
• Are certified in CPR and trained in first aid

We strive to meet the needs of all students in each classroom, however, there are some students who are better accommodated through Special Services. Please review some of the services below and note some are only available through referral process and/or testing. If you would like more information, please call CMS at 952-975-7300.

SOCIAL WORK SERVICES
The CMS Social Workers support the emotional/social growth of adolescents through work with families to address concerns and facilitate connections to needed social and mental health services in the community.

SPECIAL EDUCATION
Students who meet state criteria in any of the 13 disability areas can be provided with special education services. These include: specific learning disability, autism spectrum disorder, developmental cognitive disability, physical impairment, traumatic brain injury, speech/language impairment, vision/hearing impairment, and emotional/behavior disorder. A team consisting of parents, teachers and the student collaborates and develops an Individual Education Program (IEP), which provides guidance on programming and necessary supports.

CMS provides a continuum of services based upon individual student needs. Students may receive special education service in the general education classroom or in a small class setting, depending upon where their educational needs are best met. Services in these settings may be provided by special education staff in a variety of ways:

• Collaborating with a team of classroom teachers and paraprofessionals to plan instruction.
• Partnering with general education instructors across subject areas to provide access to the general education curriculum.
• Direct instruction on specific skill development and self-advocacy skills.
• Monitoring and accommodating for student progress in the general curriculum.

ENGLISH LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM (ELD)
ELD (English language development) courses are offered to students who ​are served in the EL Program and are working on developing their English language proficiency. ​Students served in these courses qualify for EL service as determined by the Minnesota Department of Education’s ​approved English Language Proficiency assessments (WIDA Screener or ACCESS for ELLs). CMS offers two types of ELD courses: ELD Content and ELD 6/7/8.

ELD Content is a course  designed ​for students at any English proficiency level. This class focuses on support​ing students in their mainstream content classes by strengthening academic background knowledge, vocabulary skills​, reading, speaking, and writing skills in each content area.

ELD 6/7/8 is designed for students who test at an English proficiency level of 1 or 2. This class focuses on beginning to intermediate level English reading, writing, speaking and listening

All ELD classes are tailored to students' needs and ensure that they will have the academic skills necessary to fully participate in their mainstream classes when they exit from the ELD program. 

HOMEBOUND INSTRUCTION
Homebound instruction is available for individual students confined to their homes or a hospital for an extended period. This service may begin after 15 days of absenteeism with approval of a physician. To begin this service, contact the Special Services Department at 952-975-7046.

 

ADVANCED CORE CURRICULUM

Advanced Courses are designed for students who exhibit talents in core subjects. These courses provide instruction on grade-level standards with more depth and rigor including advanced discussions and research projects using more abstract and interdisciplinary thinking. Advanced courses are available to Mosaic and students who meet entrance criteria. 

Once a student is placed in an Advanced or Accelerated course, it is expected that they maintain a course grade of at least a B and a Summative Assessment average of at least a C+. Students who do not meet these requirements may be moved out of the Advanced/Accelerated course the following school year, or they may need to retake the Accelerated math course.

 

Reading/Writing/English criteria

• 95th percentile on aReading AND proficient on submitted writing sample
• 95th percentile on aReading with strong score on submitted writing sample
• Proficient on submitted writing sample with strong score on aReading
• Teacher rating scale on English with an Exceeds on Reading MCA

Social Studies criteria

• 95th percentile on aReading AND proficient on submitted writing sample
• 95th percentile on aReading with strong score on submitted writing sample
• Proficient on submitted writing sample with strong score on aReading
• Teacher rating scale on Social Studies with an Exceeds on Reading MCA

Science criteria

• 95th percentile on aReading AND aMath
• 95th percentile on aReading with strong score in aMath
• 95th percentile on aMath with strong score in aReading
• 5th grade teacher rating scale on Science with an Exceeds on Science MCA
• 6th and 7th grade teacher rating scale on Science with strong aReading and a Math scores

6th Grade Advanced Courses
Advanced Reading 6, Advanced Writing 6, Advanced Social Studies 6, Key Scholars Social Studies 6, Advanced Science 6.

7th Grade Advanced Courses
Advanced English 7, Advanced Social Studies 7, Advanced Science 7.

8th Grade Advanced Courses
Advanced English 8, Advanced Social Studies 8, Advanced Science 8.

KEY SCHOLARS SOCIAL STUDIES 6
The 6th grade course will continue the elementary KEY/Young Scholars program experience by featuring additional course content to the Core Social Studies curriculum that has been adapted for gifted learners. 

ENRICHED CORE COURSES FOR GRADES 7 AND 8
Enriched Courses are available for 7th and 8th graders and deliver grade-level standards with rigorous coursework and high-level discussions, with an emphasis on independent learning. Students may self-select these courses using the guidelines listed below. Students who do not maintain passing marks in 7th grade Enriched classes may not be able to enroll into Enriched courses the following school year.

7th Grade

Enriched English 7
Enriched Social Studies 7
Enriched Science 7

Successful students typically have:

• MCA Reading score of Exceeds 
• Strong verbal skills and writing ability 
• Above grade level reading ability
• Motivation with ability to persevere
• Grades of A, B or C in core subjects

 

8th Grade

Enriched English 8
Enriched Social Studies 8
Enriched Science 8

Successful students typically have:

• MCA Reading score of Exceeds
• Strong verbal skills and writing ability 
• Above grade level reading ability
• Motivation with ability to persevere
• Grades of A, B or C in core subjects

 

Accelerated (Above Grade level) Math Courses 

Eden Prairie Schools believes that “school mathematics' focus should include the development of positive mathematical identities so that students can make purposeful decisions about their future endeavors; dismantling structural obstacles that stand in the way of mathematics working for all students; implementing equitable instructional practices to cultivate students' positive mathematical identities; organizing middle school mathematics along a common shared pathway grounded in the use of mathematical practices and processes to coherently develop deep mathematical understanding” (NCTM 2020). To this end, math courses at CMS are designed to group students heterogeneously. 

There are students, however, with exceptional abilities in math. Those students may qualify for a subject acceleration in math.  Courses are available at CMS for qualified students who have completed prerequisite classes or have shown mastery of standards of the course they would like to skip. 

Once a student is placed in an Advanced or Accelerated course, it is expected that they maintain a course grade of at least a B and a Summative Assessment average of at least a C+. Students who do not meet these requirements can be moved out of the Advanced/Accelerated course, or they may need to retake the Accelerated math course.

• Accelerated Honors PreAlgebra 6 is for students who have completed 5th grade Mosaic math or the equivalent.
• Telescope Math 6 is for non-Mosaic 5th grade students who meet the placement requirements below.
• Accelerated Honors Algebra 7 is for students who have completed Accelerated Honors PreAlgebra or the equivalent.
• Accelerated Honors Geometry 8 is for students who have completed Accelerated Honors Algebra (Linear and Quadratic). This course will be listed on high school transcripts.

Criteria for placement in accelerated math courses includes consistently scoring at the 98th percentile on FastBridge aMath tests, passing a procedural assessment and an additional conceptual/contextual assessment based on the course they would be skipping, or showing mastery of the course standards.

Students who have completed Accelerated Honors Geometry before 8th grade will take their math course at the high school. Students may have to forgo some desired courses due to differing daily schedules at each school. 

 

Additional Math Information

Telescope Math 6
Telescope Math 6 integrates strategies that foster the development of conceptual understanding, procedural fluency, and contextual application of mathematics. Students experience a combination of direct and student discovery-based instruction with an emphasis on embedding the 4C’s in every lesson. This approach opens doors to abstract thought, reasoning and inquiry as students persevere to answer the essential questions that drive instruction. By blending math concepts from Math 6 and Prealgebra into one year, students who successfully complete this course are placed in Honors Algebra in 7th grade. A placement process will determine eligibility for this course.

Enriched Algebra 8 
Enriched Algebra differs in content from regular Algebra with the inclusion of additional concepts (Quadratics) taught at a faster pace. This course is designed as preparation for Honors math courses at the high school. Students may self-select these courses using the following guidelines.

Successful students typically:

• Have MCA Math score of Exceeds 
• Have a solid foundation in PreAlgebra concepts
• Understand mathematical concepts quickly 
• Need minimal additional support
• Are motivated and have ability to persevere
• Grade of A, B or C in core subjects

Any questions may be directed to Leslie Eggan, Talent Development Programming Specialist for CMS (952) 975-7342 or Leslie_eggan@edenpr.org

AVID
The AVID elective class provides a curriculum that focuses on strong organization, reading, writing, and study strategies for college and career success. The AVID program targets students in the academic middle who have the desire to go to college and the willingness to work hard. The goal is for students to access rigorous coursework and increase opportunities to enroll in four-year colleges.

AVID is not appropriate for every student and there is an application process to enroll. Contact Kathleen Hellevik at 952-975-2457 or kathleen_hellevik@edenpr.k12.mn.us with any questions.

 

Students joining CMS from Eagle Heights Spanish Immersion will continue their immersive experience in 6th grade. During their first year at CMS, Spanish Immersion students will take the following courses in Spanish: Math, Social Studies, Reading, Science and Advanced Immersion 1. The remaining courses will be delivered in English.

7th and 8th grade Spanish Immersion students will take the following courses in Spanish: Social Studies and Advanced Spanish Immersion 2A or 2B. Our 7th and 8th grade Spanish Social Studies course is offered as Enriched Core.

 

Advisor occurs daily and serves as a home base for students to build relationships with one another and their teacher. During this period students engage in lessons focused on social/emotional learning, build a sense of community, provide academic support, and watch/listen to announcements.