IEP goals
Measurable IEP goal examples — written the way review meetings need them.
Every example follows the frame that makes a goal reviewable: condition, observable behaviour, criterion, and timeline with a named measurement tool. Use them as drafting inspiration — your school team and board process own the real document.
The four parts every measurable goal needs
Condition
The setting and supports: "when given a planning template…", "with access to an anchor chart…". Supports written into the goal remain rights, not favours.
Observable behaviour
Something you can see or count — decode, identify, complete, transition. If two adults could disagree about whether it happened, sharpen the verb.
Criterion
How well and how often: 90% accuracy, 4 of 5 opportunities, three consecutive sessions. This is what makes progress reviewable instead of vibes.
Timeline & measurement
By when, measured how: running records, work samples, tally sheets. Name the tool now and the next review meeting writes itself.
Goal examples by area
Adapt the numbers, supports, and timelines to the student in front of you. Each example carries a note on what makes it work, so the frame transfers to goals we haven't written.
Reading
Decoding
By the end of the term, when given a Grade 2 level text, [Name] will decode words with common vowel teams (ai, ee, oa) with 90% accuracy across three consecutive reading sessions, as measured by running records.
Why it works: Condition, behaviour, criterion, timeline, and the measurement tool are all named — that's what makes it reviewable at the next IEP meeting.
Comprehension
By June, after reading or listening to a short text, [Name] will identify the main idea and two supporting details in 4 of 5 opportunities, using a graphic organizer as needed.
Why it works: The scaffold (graphic organizer) is written into the goal so using it counts as success, not cheating.
Writing
Composition
By the end of the reporting period, [Name] will independently write a paragraph of at least four related sentences with a topic sentence, using a word bank and sentence starters, in 3 of 4 weekly writing samples.
Why it works: "Independently... using a word bank" is not a contradiction — it defines exactly which supports remain in place.
Organization
By April, when given a planning template, [Name] will complete a beginning-middle-end plan before drafting in 80% of writing tasks, as tracked in the writing folder.
Why it works: Process goals are legitimate IEP goals — planning before drafting is observable and countable.
Mathematics
Number operations
By the end of term, [Name] will solve two-digit addition and subtraction problems with regrouping using base-ten materials with 80% accuracy on weekly checks, moving to pictorial representations by the following term.
Why it works: The progression (concrete → pictorial) is built in, so the goal describes a path rather than a single hurdle.
Problem solving
By June, when given a one-step word problem read aloud, [Name] will choose the correct operation and show a solution strategy in 4 of 5 opportunities, with access to a strategy anchor chart.
Why it works: Read-aloud access separates the math goal from a reading barrier — measure one thing at a time.
Self-regulation & behaviour
Transitions
By the end of the term, [Name] will transition between classroom activities within two minutes of the signal in 8 of 10 observed transitions, using a visual schedule and a one-minute warning.
Why it works: The supports (visual schedule, warning) stay in the goal — the aim is successful transitions, not unsupported ones.
Help-seeking
By June, when facing a difficult task, [Name] will use an agreed signal or phrase to request help before leaving her seat, in 4 of 5 observed opportunities, as tracked on a simple tally sheet.
Why it works: Replacement-behaviour framing: the goal names what TO do, not what to stop doing.
Draft goals in your words — review stays with your team.
Describe the student's area of need in plain language, then use the condition-behaviour- criterion-timeline frame to write a goal you can tailor. The final wording still belongs with you and your school team inside your board's IEP process.
These examples are drafting inspiration, not legal documents. IEP development, wording, and approval follow your board's process and your school team's professional judgment.