Summary of an IEP Article

Game Plan: How to Write IEP Goals and Objectives http://www.wrightslaw.com/advoc/articles/plan_iep_goals.html

From teachers to parents, it seems like everyone is confused about how to write good IEP goals and objectives. This Wrightslaw Game Plan will help you get started.

• first identify the individual child’s unique needs
• include "present levels of performance."
• The IEP must also include a plan to meet ALL the child’s unique needs.
• Annual goals must be objective and measurable.
• This statement (citation follows) summarizes the IEP process:

"The heart of better IEP development is a sequential, three-fold inquiry made by the IEP team:

(1) What are this child’s unique educational characteristics / needs that must be taken into account in a truly individualized education program?

(2) What will the district do / provide in response to each of these characteristics?

(3) If the services are effective, what goals and objectives will the child reach? In other words, what accomplishments will indicate that the services are on the right track?

(From "Better IEPs: How to Develop Legally Correct & Educationally Useful Programs" by Barbara Bateman and Mary Anne Linden, page 91)