What are IEP goals made of? Sugar, spice, and…everything nice? If only it was that easy, right? In reality, the goal-setting process of an IEP — while essential in prioritizing the skills our kids need to access the general education curriculum — can feel pretty complicated. As parents, our input is essential when it comes to developing goals, but how do we know when a goal is “good,” or actually meaningful for our kids? Don’t worry, we’re here to uncomplicate it for you.
Whether they’re academic, behavioral, functional, social, or communication-based, the right goals — when they’re well written AND aligned with a student’s strengths, needs, and interests— can help kids make meaningful progress not only in school, but in every area of their lives.
Your goal journey starts here — read our article A Parent’s Guide to IEP Goals to learn everything from how IEP goals are developed (with parent input!) to how they’re measured. Plus, download our goal-planning templates you can use to help you create strong IEP goals for your child!
What’s the secret to a great IEP goal? As parents, identifying what a well-written goal looks like and how to tackle the different parts of a goal we want to fix can make a huge difference in our kids’ education. Read our article Rewriting Goals for an IEP to learn the basics of workshopping IEP goals!
When it comes to progress on IEP goals, remember that the district cannot simply say the goal was “met” or “not met:” they need to have hard data. But what should we be asking when it comes to data? Learn more about data, baselines, what to do when a certain goal is not being met, and more in our article on Progress Reporting for IEPs.
If you still have burning questions about goals, experts Dr. Natalie Holdren and Dr. Andrew Fedders from USCB’s Gevirtz Graduate School of Education might have the answers for you. Catch our conversation all about the 10 Questions to Ask About Goals, including why it’s important that goals make sense, are useful, and reflect students’ daily lives.
How do we create meaningful goals that are aligned with the Common Core, Common Core Connectors, Essential Understandings, AND actually work for our kids?! Dr. Solone gives us her expert insights in Standards-Based Goals: Undivided Learning with Dr. Caitlin Solone.
“If you all haven’t checked out Undivided, I’d highly recommend it. I’ve been able to store all of the docs about my son and share them with his doctors, therapists, IEP team, etc. They also help me file my insurance claims, support me monthly to make sure I’m keeping focused on my goals for my son, and they are just a wonderful company who supports our community!”
Office Hours with Lisa Carey
On Wednesday, April 17, 12:00-1:00 p.m. PT, Education Advocate Lisa Carey will be available to answer questions about IEPs and special education. Stop by for five minutes or the whole hour to get expert answers and connect with other parents. Bi-weekly Office Hours are virtual Q&A sessions with experts that are open to Undivided members only, so if you’d like to attend, sign up here to begin your free Kickstart!
What if your child is not meeting their goals? We asked Education Advocate Lisa Carey. Watch on YouTube→- Need a refresher on the parts of an IEP goal? Check out this diagram on Instagram→
- As parents, we know how important it is to celebrate our kids’ progress. Share your child’s win — big or small — with our community! Join the discussion in our private Facebook group→
- Did you see that Voyage LA Magazine profiled Undivided’s CEO? Check it out on LinkedIn→
- Need 1:1 help workshopping your child’s IEP goals? Ask your Navigator to set up a free consultation with Undivided’s education advocacy team. Get started→
Or maybe you notice the team is pushing for goals that are too focused on “functional” skills instead of academic or developmental goals? 
