IEP Writing: Sample Goals

Here are some sample goals I have used recently!  These are for various students… I tried my best to include ones for both higher and lower functioning students in my class.  
I have included modified Ontario Curriculum expectations, as well as Alternate Programming (areas not included in the Ontario Curriculum).

Behaviour Self-Regulation
1.  Be able to work at an independent level for 15 consecutive minutes followed by a 10 minute exercise break, with little supervision from staff.  Based on 5 tracked opportunities per day with 80% accuracy over 5 consecutive days.
2.  Demonstrate compliance when given a directive (i.e., "put rice bin away") and refrain from self-injurious behaviour (e.g., biting) for 3 out of 4 directives given.  
3.  Verbally request a break (i.e., "Ms. M, I need a break") during times where the task is too difficult and/or he feels bored.  Based on 5 tracked opportunities per day with 70% accuracy over 5 consecutive days.

Expressive Language
1.  Be able to follow 3 of 5 conversational conventions (eye contact, on topic,  relevant questions, answering questions, and ending  appropriately) with 5 or less verbal prompts.  Based on 5 tracked opportunities per day with 70% accuracy over 3 consecutive days.
2.  Be able to accurately answer who, what and where questions when provided a visual from the story.  Based on 8 tracked opportunities per day with 80% accuracy.over 5 consecutive days.
3.  Spontaneously use his communication device to express a want or need 3 times throughout the school day.
4.  Be able to request an item during free choice by using a complete sentence (e.g., “Ms. M, I want iPad please”) in response to the question "What do you want for choice?"  Based on 5 tracked opportunities per day with 80% accuracy over 3 consecutive days

Mathematics
1.  Be able to name a nickel, dime, quarter, loonie and toonie when presented with the coin or picture representation of the coin.  Based on 10 tracked opportunities per day with 80% accuracy over three consecutive days.
2.  Be able to sort a variety of household items by sorting them into their correct category.  (e.g. forks with forks, socks with socks etc). Based on 5 tracked opportunities per day with 80% accuracy over 3 consecutive days.
3.  Be able to identify, sort and classify 6 out of 8 two dimensional shapes (i.e., square, rectangle, rhombus, trapezoid, parallelogram, triangle, circle, oval) based on attributes (e.g., curvy or straight, number of sides). Based on 3 tracked opportunities per day with 80% accuracy over 3 consecutive days.
4.  When shown a number on a flashcard, (student) will identify the number by pressing the button on his communication device.  Based on 10 tracked opportunities per day with 70% accuracy over 5 consecutive days.
5. Be able to identify and extend numeric repeating patterns (i.e., 2's, 5's). Based on 10 tracked opportunities per day with 80% accuracy over 3 consecutive days.

Personal Care
1.  Independently maintain personal hygiene (brushing teeth and deodorant routine) using a visual schedule, and achieve a minimum of 90% on his personal hygiene checklist, in 4 out of 5 attempts.
2.  Be able to independently complete washroom routine (specifically pull down and pull up pull-up). Based on 2 tracked opportunities per day with 80% accuracy over 5 consecutive days

Reading
1.  Be able to independently recognize 20 pre-primer sight words (i.e., flashcards) with 90% accuracy on 4 out of 5 trials for 5 consecutive days.
2.  Be able to orally read a familiar story (pattern book or morning meeting message), stopping to sound out 5 in 10 words or less, in 4 out of 5 trials for 5 consecutive days.
3.  Be able to retell a familiar story to include beginning, middle, and end of the story in sequence with 70% accuracy on 4 out of 5 trials for 5 consecutive days.

Receptive Language
1.  Be able to independently respond to three simple steps 1) put communication binder in mailbox, 2) put lunch away, 3) get ready for morning meeting, 90% of the time in 4 out 5 trials.

Science/Social Studies:
1.  Accurately label 15 body parts on himself and/or picture representations with 90% accuracy on 4 out of 5 trials for 5 consecutive days.
2.  Accurately name 3 different community helpers (fireman, policeman, doctor), and match their roles to the picture cards.  Based on 3 tracked opportunities per day with 80% accuracy over 3 consecutive days.

Social Skills:
1.  Be able to independently greet his peers by saying “Hi, (insert name)” during morning meeting. Based on 1 tracked opportunity per day with 80% accuracy over 5 consecutive days.

Writing:
1.  Be able to use sentence starters and a visual word wall to independently write 3 complete sentences in his writing journal.  Based on 5 tracked opportunities per day with 60% accuracy over 5 consecutive days.
2.  When shown 3 high frequent sight words in an array of 3 (name, rice bin, washroom) student will match a picture of the item to the word of the picture.  Based on 10 tracked opportunities per day with 80% accuracy over three consecutive days.
3.  Be able to use a word processing program to complete a task in his writing journal.  Based on 5 tracked opportunities per day with 80% accuracy over 5 consecutive days.
4.  Be able to write and send a message through email to a pre-determined family member with 3 or less verbal prompts.  Based on 1 tracked opportunity per day with 80% accuracy over 5 consecutive days

So many IEP goals… so little time!

Keep calm and teach on!

- S

IEP Writing: Step Two - S.M.A.R.T Goals

I had collected all the information, data and assessment for each student… and it came time to write the actual IEPs.  I had heard time and time again that my goals had to be S.M.A.R.T… but what exactly does this mean?  Through reading books and blogs, talking to my mentor and attending an IEP workshop… I present you with one nice little blog post summarizing S.M.A.R.T goals!  

 

Specific: A specific goal has a much greater chance of being accomplished than a general goal. To set a specific goal you must answer the six “W” questions

•               Who:      Who is involved?

•               What:     What do I want to accomplish?

•               Where:    Identify a location.

•               When:     Establish a time frame.

•               Which:    Identify requirements and constraints.

•               Why:      Specific reasons, purpose or benefits of accomplishing the goal.

Measurable criteria:

•               percentage correct

•               frequency (number correct in a specified time period – ie. 25 per minute)

•               prompts – use adult prompts as a measurable criteria

•               for all criteria: how many days must this criteria be reached to be considered mastered? Consecutive of nonconsecutive days/sessions?

EXAMPLE:  A general goal would be, “Write his name.”  But a specific goal would say, “Be able to write his name legibly, using both upper and lower case letters and staying within the lines.  Based on 3 tracked opportunities per day with 80% accuracy over 5 consecutive days.”

Measurable - Establish concrete criteria for measuring progress toward the attainment of each goal you set.# correct out of certain # of trials or opportunities

Attainable –  Make sure the goals are attainable for that specific student. For example, for a nonverbal student with autism the ultimate goal may be the ability to verbally communicate. However, this goal may not be attainable within a year. Instead a more attainable IEP goal would be: The student will learn to use PECS to communicate his wants and needs.

Realistic- I find attainable and realistic very similar.  In almost every piece of literature I read, realistic referred to determining if the child can meet the goal itself.

I view the realistic portion of a S.M.A.R.T goal very differently.  I wanted to make sure that each goal, though based on the Ontario Curriculum, is realistic and beneficial to the student's life.

For example, in the Data Management strand for grade 1, student's are expected to demonstrate an ability to organize objects into categories by sorting and classifying objects using one attribute.

I modified this expectation:  (Student) will be able to sort a variety of household items by sorting them into their correct category.  (e.g. forks with forks, socks with socks etc). 

Sorting laundry (lights and darks) or cutlery (forks, spoons and knives) is an essential life skill that still falls under the umbrella of data management.

Time-Bound – IEP goals need to have a time frame. Having a set amount of time will give your goals structure and keep everyone on track to helping the student meet their goal.

I will post some example goals shortly!

Keep calm and teach on!

- S

IEP Writing: Step One

Exactly 30 days after the first day of school, teachers must send home the first term IEP’s (Individual Education Plans).  This thought in itself was daunting for me.  This meant I had to get to know my students (likes, dislikes, reinforcers, etc), assess their academic abilities and write my first ever IEP (make that 5) in less than 30 days.  The whole process was overwhelming and I had no idea where to begin!

Simple put, in order to make challenging yet achievable goals for your students; you must first know what they already CAN do.  I used a variety of sources to help me assess where my students were at the beginning of the school year.

Parents

A student’s parents are one of your best resources.  They know their child inside and out, and are often able to give information that others could not.  I met with all of my families the week before school started, and together we co-created profiles of their child (medical history, communication, behaviour, academic abilities, levels of independence, etc.)  This was a quick way to gain an understanding of each student, and is great to have for reference in meetings, when supply teachers come in, etc.

OSR’s

The Ontario Student Record (OSR) is the record of a student's educational progress through schools in Ontario. It also is a great source for gaining valuable knowledge about your students.  Why reinvent the wheel if someone has already done some assessment for you?

Quite often with students with autism, the OSR is massive.  Go grab a coffee and get ready to do some serious digging!!  I found it useful to read recent psychology reports/assessments, health/medical reports, consultations and assessments from Speech and Language as well as the Occupational Therapists and any reports form outside agencies (specifically IBI).

Report Cards

The purpose of provincial report cards is to communicate how well a student has achieved the overall curriculum expectations for each subject at the end of a period of learning. (e.g., end of term 1 and end of year). 

I read through each student’s report cards to gain a better understanding of the types of modified curriculum expectations they were working on, and whether or not they were able to achieve the expectations as of June of last year,

ABLLS

I was shown this assessment tool from one of my colleagues and I absolutely LOVE it.  It is amazing for students who are lower functioning, have emerging verbal/academic skills, and/or are typically developing at a kindergartener/grade 1 level. 

There are 26 skills areas, from visual performance, to labeling, to reading.  And within each skill area is a bunch of tasks.  You rate how well the student can accomplish each task using a rubric.  It is extremely easy to use, and although time consuming, very worth it!

You can even colour code the rubric to continuously assess during the year and document growth.

PM Benchmarks

For my higher functioning students, I used PM Benchmarks to assess reading fluency, comprehension, reading quantity and quality, level of text, and attitudes and interests in response to what students are reading.  This helped me determine the student’s “level” of reading, strengths, and needs. 

Observation

One of the best pieces of advice I received within the first week of school was: “Don’t stress about the academics.  Get to know the students and allow the students an opportunity to get to know you and the classroom… the rest will come.” 

With so much to get done, it seems silly to sit back and observe your students.  However, purposeful observation offers so many benefits.  My staff and I made a strong effort to focus on observing the students’ current skills, strengths, weaknesses, likes and dislikes, and this information informed a lot (if not the most) of my planning.

Now that you’ve gathered all the information you need, you can start to write your IEP’s…. but that’s a whole other post in itself!!

More to come!

Keep calm and teach on!

- S

Meet the Creature Night

Your school may call it Curriculum Night, Meet-the-Teacher Night, or Back-to-School Night. Whatever it's called, most teachers breath a sigh of relief when its over!  

This year, I was really looking forward to curriculum night.  I’ve learned it is not just a time to inform families about what their child is going to learn, but it’s also the perfect opportunity to connect with one of my most valuable resources: my parents. It's a connection I keep going all year long.

Since I had met all of my parents previously, and each child in on their own Individualized Education Plan, I knew my Curriculum night would look a lot different than the other presentations in the school.  My focus was to have fun, and show the families some of the amazing things their children do on a daily basis.

We started our evening off with Morning Meeting:

1.  Good morning (or in this case evening) greeting to all members of the group

2.  Calendar time

3.  Daily weather report

4.  How do you feel today?

5.  Question of the week - This week's question is "What is your favourite animal?"

6.  Dance break - and yes…. even the parents danced!

After our morning meeting, each student/parent completed a classroom scavenger hunt:

This was a great way for the students to show their parents the different areas of our classroom and feel a sense of pride and ownership of the room.  

Take a look at the resource below (I use Boardmaker for absolutely everything).

We ended our evening with Free Choice:

The boys hangout in our break area and the parents chit-chatted with each other and the EAs in my room (who stayed late for the special night!)

I couldn't let the students leave without a special treat!

Overall, the night was a huge success!!

Keep calm and teach on!

- S