writing smart goals for speech and language therapy

Make S.M.A.R.T. Speech Therapy Goals

Source: ollibird.com

If you’re the parent of a child in speech therapy, you might sometimes feel like you’re up against a wall of resistance. Maybe there are unknowns when it comes to your child’s speech disorder, and your child might be frustrated with the speech therapy routine or homework. As adults it is easier to see the big picture – that improved communication skills are so valuable for the future and worth the effort. For kids, however, speech therapy can be tiring, hard work, and sometimes even a source of insecurity among peers. Help your son or daughter set and reach speech therapy goals using a traditional business model – S.M.A.R.T. – and you’ll find that speech therapy might just get a little easier, and the goals a little closer.

What Is S.M.A.R.T Goal Planning?

Have you ever heard of the phrase if you fail to plan, you plan to fail? The S.M.A.R.T. goal planning model helps you make sure that you are planning for success. While the model is often used in business planning, it is a very beneficial guideline for kids and has been successfully used by many special education teachers and SLPs. You can help your child apply this approach for speech therapy, or even academic homework, too.

Smart Speech Therapy Goals

S – Specific – Work with your child’s SLP to establish very specific goals. The general goal of “improve articulation” can seem overwhelming and unobtainable for kids. The more specific the goal the greater the likelihood that your child will feel empowered and capable. If you’re stuck on how to make the goals specific, work with your child to answer the basic questions of:

• Who? (child, child w/parent, or child/SLP combo)
• What? (specific goal)
• When? (days/times during week)
• Where? (at SLP’s office, in home, on the go)
• How? (any extra tools/supplies needed)

M – Measurable – Look for measurable ways your child can work on speech therapy goals. This might mean playing 2 vocabulary games, completing 3 worksheets, or attending a month of therapy appointments.

A – Achievable – Some speech disorders are more difficult to treat than others and the goals for your child should be achievable based on his or her specific challenges. Make sure your child has the resources needed to make the goals achievable, both in time and in tangible supplies. Help your child navigate any obstacles that might otherwise prevent him from tackling the goal.

R – Realistic – Make sure that the steps needed to reach the goal are healthy, logical, and in line with the overall objectives of the SLP. A goal of “no stuttering by end of summer” for a child who is just beginning speech therapy for stuttering is not only unlikely to happen so swiftly (if at all), but it can create an unhealthy self-image for the child. A better goal would be “improve pacing of speech during class presentations” because it is specific and uses positive language .

T – Timely – Make sure to incorporate time-related markers for the goals. Time is tangible, measurable, and specific. Some examples of these might be:

• Work on speech therapy flashcards for 15 minutes 4 days a week
• Improve articulation when reading the /r/ sounds book in 3 weeks
• Attend speech therapy group sessions at least 2 times this month
• Read aloud for 10 minutes each day to Mom or Dad

When you work with your child to create S.M.A.R.T. goals, you are teaching him or her how to use an approach to many of life’s challenges , not just speech therapy. By partnering with your child’s SLP you can also make sure that your child is receiving consistent instruction and expectations. Use motivation charts to help keep track of the goals to which your child is working. Remember – you can already see the big picture, but your child needs you to begin with a simple sketch of what the steps look like along the way.

12 SMART Goals Examples for Speech Therapy

You should realize that speech therapy is integral to those who face communication or speech-related issues. Fortunately, establishing SMART goals provides a clear roadmap for therapists and their patients.

But what exactly are SMART goals, and how can they be applied in the context of speech therapy? This post will explore 12 SMART goals examples that speech therapists may use when designing treatment plans for their patients.

Table of Contents

What is a SMART Goal?

The SMART ( Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time-based ) framework will allow you to establish effective goals for speech therapy.

Here is a deeper dive into each SMART component:

The more precise your goal is, the easier it is for everyone involved in the process to understand what must be done. Instead of aiming for something vague like “improved speech skills,” try breaking down that goal into smaller chunks.

Aiming for increased clarity when pronouncing certain words or articulating complete sentences are examples of more achievable targets that you can work towards over time.

The inherent complexity of speech therapy requires that goals be measurable for successful outcomes. Tracking progress allows the therapist to adjust strategies, deepening their understanding of the patient’s needs. It will be easier to identify which treatment plans are effective.

Make sure you remain realistic about what you can achieve rather than aiming too high and feeling disappointed. Goal achievement should provide satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment, not an exercise in futility.

Focus on creating incremental steps that push you closer to your ultimate goal instead of trying to do it all at once. And ensure you have the resources and skills necessary to reach them.

Setting meaningful goals allows you to create a better life. But when those goals are rooted in personal values, they become even more powerful. Connecting your ambitions with your core beliefs makes you determined to overcome any difficulty.

Start by taking an honest look at what’s important to you. What do you believe in? What do you hold dear in life? Once these questions have been answered, it’s time to create relevant goals. You’ll lay the groundwork for excellence.

A solid timeline fosters a sense of urgency, propelling yourself forward while allowing room for flexibility. You will find it easier to stay laser-focused on the end result instead of getting lost in the daily grind.

Here are 12 examples of SMART goals for effective speech therapy:

1. Strengthen Communication

“I’ll strengthen the communication skills of my patients within three months by helping them learn new forms of expressing themselves, such as non-verbal communication, writing stories, or even just engaging in conversation with peers.”

Specific: This SMART statement focuses on helping patients communicate better by learning new forms of expression.

Measurable: You can track your patient’s progress and the forms of expression they are learning.

Attainable: This is feasible as long as patients have enough time to practice expressing themselves.

Relevant: Solid communication skills will definitely benefit your patients in the long run.

Time-based: The goal should be achieved within three months.

2. Improve Articulation

“I will improve my patient’s articulation of the English language by focusing on foreign accent syndrome and other speech impairments over 6 months. I’ll use language exercises, reading aloud, and other techniques to help them improve their vocal clarity.”

Specific: The goal is well-defined, detailing precisely the objective and how it will be reached.

Measurable: The patient’s articulation can be measured in terms of how accurately they pronounce words compared to a baseline.

Attainable: This can be achieved through language exercises, reading aloud, and other techniques.

Relevant: Improving articulation is directly related to a speech therapist’s job.

Time-based: You have a timeline of 6 months for completion.

3. Enhance Prosody and Fluency

“I’ll work with the patient to increase their prosody and fluency in speech for two months. We can start by focusing on their rhythm and rate of speech, then move onto other aspects such as intonation, stress, and pitch.”

Specific: The SMART goal specifies improving the patient’s prosody and fluency.

Measurable: You could determine the patient’s progress by assessing the rate, rhythm, intonation, stress, and pitch of their speech.

Attainable: Enhancing prosody and fluency is doable with the right amount of effort.

Relevant: This relates to improving the patient’s prosody and fluency of speech.

Time-based: The goal is anticipated to be met within two months.

4. Increase Speech Volume

“The patient wants to increase the volume of their speech for small and large groups by speaking louder and more clearly. In four months, they’ll achieve a volume that can be heard and understood by all group members.”

Specific: This is specific because it focuses on increasing speech volume for small and large groups.

Measurable: Ensure the patient receives feedback from group members to monitor their volume level.

Attainable: This statement is achievable if the patient consistently practices speaking louder and more clearly.

Relevant: Increasing speech volume is vital for anyone who wants to be understood by the public.

Time-based: Goal attainment is expected in four months.

5. Boost Language Comprehension

“To support language comprehension, I’ll have my patients complete weekly exercises that challenge them to think of synonyms and explain the meaning of words. These exercises will be completed over the course of three months.”

Specific: The goal details the objective, what will be done to achieve it, and the timeline.

Measurable: You could measure how many exercises are completed each week and the patient’s comprehension test scores.

Attainable: This is achievable because it provides a realistic timeline to improve language comprehension.

Relevant: This goal is essential for helping patients develop and practice language comprehension skills.

Time-based: There is a three-month end date for success.

6. Deepen Vocabulary Knowledge

“I aim to improve the patient’s vocabulary by introducing and reinforcing new words twice a week for the following four months. I want them to use the new words in everyday conversations and demonstrate an understanding of their meanings.”

Specific: The statement is centered on improving the patient’s vocabulary.

Measurable: Make sure you introduce and reinforce new words twice a week.

Attainable: The timeline of four months is enough for the patient to get a good grasp of the words.

Relevant: Boosting the patient’s vocabulary is necessary to help them communicate better.

Time-based: This goal has a deadline of four months.

7. Develop Social Interaction Skills

“For 6 months, I want to help my patient develop more social interaction skills. This may involve them attending group sessions with people with similar disabilities and learning to communicate better with their peers, family, and friends.”

Specific: The aim is to assist the patient in growing social interaction skills.

Measurable: The patient’s progress can be tracked by the number of group sessions attended and their ability to communicate better with others.

Attainable: With sufficient practice and guidance, developing social interaction skills is possible.

Relevant: Social interaction skills are essential for a patient’s well-being and speech development.

Time-based: Six whole months are required for goal attainment.

8. Enhance Problem Solving

“I’ll develop 5 problem-solving strategies and implement them within two months in the speech therapy sessions. That should encourage my clients to better understand the concept of problem solving and be able to apply it in their day-to-day life situations.”

Specific: You have outlined 5 problem-solving strategies for therapy sessions.

Measurable: Five strategies should be developed and implemented within two months.

Attainable: It’s realistic for a therapist to implement strategies in the allotted time frame.

Relevant: The strategies should be appropriate to problem solving and helping patients understand the concept.

Time-based: You have two months to reach this particular goal.

9. Promote Self-Confidence

“By the end of 5 months, I hope to develop a program to foster self-confidence in my speech therapy clients. The program should include activities that help people recognize their strengths and resources for dealing with underlying self-esteem issues.”

Specific: The goal specifies the duration of 5 months, what program to create, and what activities should be included.

Measurable: You can check whether the program was created and implemented into your practice.

Attainable: Creating a program to promote self-confidence is achievable.

Relevant: This goal is pertinent to improving self-confidence in speech therapy clients.

Time-based: There is a 5-month window for success.

10. Use of Sign Language

“I’ll strive to introduce the use of sign language in my speech therapy sessions by the end of the year. I want to better communicate with patients who are deaf or hard of hearing, as well as enhance their understanding and participation in the sessions.”

Specific: The SMART goal is well-defined. The therapist wants to introduce sign language in their speech therapy sessions.

Measurable: Make sure you follow the listed action items above.

Attainable: It is a realistic goal that can be reached given sufficient time and resources.

Relevant: This goal is appropriate for a speech therapist to help patients who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Time-based: Goal completion will be met by the end of the year.

11. Respond to Directions

“The aim is to have my patients accurately respond to directions, instructions, and questions for two months. I’ll provide verbal and nonverbal cues, visual aids, and other support means to help them better understand the instructions.”

Specific: The individual aims to help patients accurately respond to directions, instructions, and questions.

Measurable: You will track how accurately your patient responds to directions.

Attainable: This is reachable because the person will use cues, visual aids, and other support means to help patients understand instructions better.

Relevant: Responding to instructions and directions is crucial to speech development.

Time-based: The goal is time-bound since it has an end date of two months.

12. Improve Memory Retention

“Over three months, I’ll create and test various memory retention techniques with my speech therapy clients. I want to remember instructions and concepts more effectively.”

Specific: This goal is explicit because the speech therapist plans to improve their patient’s memory retention.

Measurable: You can track the success of your memory retention techniques and keep notes on each session.

Attainable: You have identified a reasonable timeline to create and test various memory retention techniques.

Relevant: Improving memory retention skills is a crucial aspect of speech therapy.

Time-based: This particular goal has a three-month time frame.

Final Thoughts

The SMART method is a great tool for speech pathology professionals and their patients. By creating well-rounded SMART goals for each patient, you can provide them with a framework for success in their recovery journey.

You’ll also have an easier time measuring progress in speech therapy. So be sure to keep this information in mind when creating your next goals and set yourself up for greatness.

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How to Write Measurable and Innovative Speech Therapy Goals

• June 12, 2023

Speech therapy goals can be tricky at times, but I’m here to share my best goal-writing and implementation tips.  I find it easiest to have a few good core goals ready to go that I can then individualize depending on the student and their needs. Keeping a steady log of these goals makes goal writing so much easier.  In this post, I have my favorite vocabulary speech therapy goals, as well as, speech therapy goals for fluency and Autism.  

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Speech Therapy Goals

One thing I struggled with the most when I was starting out my first year was quickly and easily writing new IEP goals or updating old goals for students on my caseload. I tended to overthink and write and rewrite my goals until they were just right for my students, making it really hard on myself.  For more on my journey as a school SLP, click here.

Now 10 years in, I have created a goal bank for myself of ideas in my head and on paper that are my go-to starting points when writing an IEP. These basic goals give me a good starting point when writing my IEPs and then all I have to do is go in and individualize based on that student’s needs. Now, is absolutely everything included here? No. Will there always be outliers or students with totally different needs? Absolutely. After all, this is the schools and we just never know what each year will bring.  However, we can be pretty sure we’ll need a couple of key goals in the main areas we see year after year. For me, that would be Arctic, Vocabulary, Organization, Fluency, and Comprehension.

Speech Therapy Goals for Articulation

Below are some example goals I might write for articulation:

• By the end of this IEP cycle, STUDENT will accurately produce the following sounds: _________ in words and phrases with 80% accuracy as measured by therapy data and observations.

When working with students who have apraxia, I write my goals a little bit differently. Instead of focusing on specific sounds that I want the student to produce correctly, I might focus on placement and movement between placement at different syllable levels. Here are a couple of examples of how I might ride my apraxia goals:

• During structured therapy tasks, STUDENT will produce bilabial movement sequences given only a verbal model on 10 presentations with 70% accuracy as measured by therapy data and observation.
• During structured therapy tasks, STUDENT well accurately produced CVCVCV words (E.g., animal, tomato) with 80% accuracy as measured by therapy data and observation.
• During structured therapy tasks, STUDENT will accurately produce words with contrasting sound pairs (e.g., D/K, D/G, T/K, T/G with 80% accuracy as measured by therapy data and observation.

Progress Monitoring Speech Goals

Now, for my students with more severe articulation and/or phonological delays, that’s where it can get a little more tricky.  If I were to try to go through every single sound error in every position, it would take forever.  I also may not get great information about sound patterns and situations they may struggle/not struggle with – not to mention how incredibly frustrating it would be for the child.  For that reason, I use a quick articulation/phonological progress monitoring tool (which also doubles as a screener) to get a snapshot of the child’s overall sound errors.  It not only gives me a great place to start but also gives me a quick, visual, easy way to progress-monitor throughout the year and before IEP updates.

Speech Therapy Goals for Fluency

When writing fluency goals, I like to focus on the use of implementation of fluency strategies versus focusing on reducing the number of disfluencies in speech. I like to rate levels of success and mastery based on my students’ confidence in their speech and their ability to apply strategies on their own versus how many disfluencies they are actually producing. I would rather my student have a higher level of dysfluencies but be able to apply strategies when needed and with confidence rather than a student with fewer disfluencies, who is also less confident in their speech and/or unable to apply strategies independently.

Here are some of my example fluency goals:

• During structured therapy tasks, STUDENT will use fluency strategies (e.g., smooth speech, slow rate, full breath, etc.) and structured speaking tasks (e.g., answering questions, story retail, therapy games), with the use of visual cues and reminders, in four out of five opportunities.
• STUDENT will self-monitor his use of fluency strategies using an SLP-created rating scale in four out of five opportunities as measured by therapy data and observations.

Speech Therapy Goals for Expressive Language

“Language is a rule-governed behavior. It is defined as the comprehension and/or use of a spoken (i.e., listening and speaking), written (i.e., reading and writing), and/or other communication symbol system (e.g., American Sign Language).” ( ASHA ).

Language can be broken into 2 main areas, receptive and expressive.  Receptive refers to listening and reading skills and expressive language refers to speaking and writing.

Speaking includes the following skill areas: appropriate use of phonological patterns, using morphemes correctly, using correct sentence structure, expressive vocabulary, and social language.  

Writing included the following skill areas: spelling, grammar and sentence structure, writing vocabulary, and point of view or intended message/purpose.

Vocabulary Speech Therapy Goals

• During structured therapy tasks, STUDENT will apply an organizational strategy to provide 3 to 4 details when defining/describing presented vocabulary as measured by therapy data and/or student product.
• Given a sentence starter, STUDENT will express word relationships (e.g., category, parts of a whole, similarities/differences, color) with 80% accuracy.
• STUDENT will learn and use the following core vocabulary/classroom vocabulary (want, again, come, bad, no, help, me) using signs, approximation of signs, and/or an AAC board to indicate wants, needs, and/or action with 70% accuracy with visual, verbal and no more than 2 physical cues as measured by teacher checklists and therapy data.

Syntax Speech Therapy Goals

• STUDENT will express regular past tense verbs from pictures with 80% accuracy as measured by therapy data and observations.
• Given a sentence starter, STUDENT will describe a given picture using the appropriate subjective or objective pronoun with 85% accuracy as measured by therapy data and observations.

Pragmatic Speech Therapy Goals

I must admit, this is not my area of specialty and I am still learning A LOT.  I highly recommend looking into some resources that are available to assist in writing neurodivergent goals for Autistic students.  One example is this Goal Writing Course by Rachel Dorsey , available for ASHA CEUs.

Speech Therapy Goals – Autism

Make sure your goals are NOT focused on behaviors that may be uncomfortable for the student (e.g., eye contact) or that will force them to “fit in.”

Instead, focus on goals to help them advocate for themselves and express their needs as well as understanding a variety of communication styles and language (e.g., figurative, sarcasm, etc.).

I highly recommend following “bohospeechie” on Instagram, she shares some great information on neurodiversity and has some great sample goals like in this post here .

Speech Therapy Goals – Social Skills Group

Instead of what we would typically think of in a “social skills group,” try pairing students based on their special interests.  This will give students a comfortable environment to be themselves, and instruction can be provided about a variety of communication types/styles and students may be given a choice as to how they would like to communicate/interact.

For more information on speech therapy goals:

Grammar Goals for Speech Therapy from The Pedi Speechie

4 Goals to Target Self-Monitoring in Speech Therapy from Kiwi Speech

SMART Goal Bank: Elementary from The Speech Bubble SLP

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I hope you found some of these ideas helpful and can use one or more in your therapy room.  Please leave a comment or shoot me an email if you want to share some of your favorite speech therapy goals and treatment ideas.

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hi, I'm Kendall!

I help SLPs like you with planning, resources, research, and materials so that you can spend more time enjoying your therapy time and less time stressing about planning and materials. 

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Quick tips for writing speech and language iep goals.

When writing speech therapy IEP goals, I don't think any SLP has ever said:

Writing goals is fun!

I love writing goals!

Writing goals is my favourite thing to do!

If you haven’t - you aren’t alone. Writing IEP goals is one of the most daunting tasks of being an SLP. It can be time-consuming, overwhelming, and exhausting.

I want to share five quick tips on how you can make IEP goal writing EASY!

Write one target per goal. Don’t put multiple sounds or concepts into one goal. Write exactly what it is that you want the child to learn. This makes goal writing so much easier because you aren’t cramming way too much information into one little goal. This will also help parents understand what you are targeting and will help you summarize a child’s progress with that particular goal quickly and concisely.

Use a template . Creating a text that you can use as a starting point for different goals. ‘Filling in’ a goal template will help you save time. For example: By DATE, NAME will SKILL with PERCENTAGE accuracy with TYPE/LEVEL of cueing. Simply fill in the missing information.

Don’t choose goals from a standardized test. Think FUNCTION. Choose goals that will be applicable to a student’s everyday life.

Use a long-term goal and a short-term goal. This is very helpful when explaining goals to parents and teachers. Why? Because long term goals are often easier to understand for non-SLPs. For example, a parent might not understand why you are targeting ‘third-person singular verbs’ (short term goal), but will likely understand why you are targeting the long-term goal of using age-appropriate grammar.

Create an IEP goal bank. Write your most commonly used goals in one place for easy reference. Make it easily editable, so you can use it over and over again for years to come.

Want to save time and find a resource that takes all of these tips into consideration?

After 12 years as an SLP, I took all of these tips and created a HUGE TIMESAVING resource for myself: Preschool Goal Bank with 340 Goals.

This MASSIVE Preschool Speech and Language Goal Bank includes IEP goals for speech and language, including: receptive language, expressive language, social language, early language, play skills, classroom participation, speech sounds, wh questions, language processing, rhyming, and behaviour. It is editable, customizable, and can be used over and over with all of my students. It has completely changed my (and other SLPs) goal-writing game!

Here is what other SLPs are saying:

On August 18, 2020, Olivia C said, “ Writing quality goals takes me so much time and energy but having this resource has really been a lifesaver! I really trust Anna and her years of experience and I feel so much better knowing I have this goal bank to rely on when I need it, which is all of the time!"

On February 19, 2020, Katherine C said, “Even after several years of being an SLP, I can still get stuck when it comes to writing goals. Hallelujah for this resource! I can find appropriate goals quickly and I don't have to spend precious time trying to generate just the right goal with just the right wording! Thank you for making my life as a therapist just a little easier this year!!!”

Do you need this IEP goal bank in your life?

Head to my store and grab it here., want more tips, tricks, and play-based freebies, delivered right to your inbox, sign up for the anna dee slp newsletter.

• Speech Therapy Tips and Tricks

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Resource library, smart goal bank: elementary.

Goal writing can be tricky sometimes, especially when we are trying to figure just how we want to tackle a skill deficit.  Luckily, for some nerdy reason ?, goal writing is my JAM!  I always write following a S.M.A.R.T goal format Also SMART Goal Bank.  Below you will find examples of Objectives/Short Term (ST) goals.

Please feel free to use any of these as a base to create goals for your students but be sure to align the goals to your student’s timeline and ability ??

Helpful posts to check out before you read:   Prompts and Cues…yes, they are different  

I have several resources geared to goal writing and data collection. If you feel shaky on goals you may want to check out this mini-course .  You can follow my TpT store to make sure you don’t miss any new additions as well as Instagram and Facebook where I frequently share lots of data and goal tips.

TIP: When writing goals for lists ( vocab, categories, labeling, etc ) explicitly state the targeted words you are going to work on in the notes section of the IEP!  This will make your data collection a breeze since you will know what to target.  If the students masters the list, high five! Create a new list, discuss it will parents ( and IEP team if necessary), complete an amendment to the IEP and keep on rolling.

Expressive Language: SMART Goal Bank

• When presented with a targeted picture, STUDENT will accurately label the picture with no more than two verbal or visual prompt/cues with 80% accuracy or better over three consecutive sessions.
• When presented with a visual field of 4 pictures, STUDENT will accurately label the picture stated by the clinician with no additional prompts or cues and 70% accuracy or better over three consecutive sessions.
• After being shown a picture scene, STUDENT will state the locations of various objects by correctly using spatial basic concepts terms with no more than two verbal or visual prompts/cues and 70% accuracy or better over three consecutive sessions.
• When presented with a picture of a targeted object, STUDENT will accurately state the function of the object with no more than one verbal/visual prompt or cue with 60% accuracy or better over three consecutive sessions.
• When verbally told a list of 3 items, STUDENT will state the accurate category that the items belong to with no more than two verbal or visual prompts/cues and  70% accuracy or better over three consecutive sessions.
• When told given a targeted category, STUDENT will state at least different items that would be included in the category with no additional prompts or cues and 80% accuracy or better over three consecutive sessions.
• After being told a targeted word, STUDENT will state a correct synonym for the word with no more than two verbal or visual prompts/cues and 60% accuracy or better over three consecutive sessions.
• After being told a targeted word, STUDENT will state a correct antonym for the word with no more than two verbal or visual prompts/cues and 60% accuracy or better over three consecutive sessions.
• After being presented with pictures of two items, STUDENT will accurately state at least one way the items are similar with no more than one verbal or visual prompt/cue and 80% accuracy or better over three consecutive sessions.
• After being presented with pictures of two items, STUDENT will accurately state at least one way the items are different with no more than one verbal or visual prompt/cue and 80% accuracy or better over three consecutive sessions.
• After being shown a picture of an object, STUDENT will describe the object by stating at least three different characteristics with no more than one verbal or visual prompt/cue and 80% accuracy or better over three consecutive sessions.
• When discussing a picture scene or event in the past tense, STUDENT will accurately utilize past tense verbs in sentences with no more than verbal or visual prompt/cue and 60% accuracy or better over three consecutive sessions.

RECEPTIVE LANGUAGE: SMART Goal Bank

• STUDENT will accurately complete two-step directions with no more than one verbal or visual prompt/cue with 80% accuracy or better over three consecutive sessions.
• After being read or reading academically appropriate information, STUDENT will identify the correct answer from 3  multiple choice options with no additional prompts/cues with 80% accuracy or better over three consecutive sessions.

SEMANTICS: SMART Goal Bank

-STUDENT will utilize context clue strategies to determine the meaning of unknown words in sentences with no additional prompts/cues and 80% accuracy or better over three consecutive sessions.

-When given a targeted vocabulary word, STUDENT will correctly state the meaning of the word with no additional prompts/cues with 75% accuracy or better over three consecutive sessions.

– When given a multiple-meaning word, STUDENT will state at least two different meanings of the word with no more than one verbal or visual prompt/cues with 80% accuracy or better over three consecutive sessions.

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14 Goal-Writing

Kamhi (2014) and Diehm (2017) highlight the importance of goal-writing in the treatment of children with language-learning disorders, suggesting that goal-writing is one of the most important aspects of intervention. Most SLPs recognize the importance of goal-writing, but many still find this a challenging aspect of clinical practice. Diehm emphasizes the importance of individualizing goals, rather than merely relying on “goal banks” provided by software designed to prepare Individualized Education Programs (IEPs). She also cautions against writing goals that closely resemble items on standardized tests, as this may invalidate future administrations of that test and may not result in academic success. Instead, SLPs should align goals to educational standards. In order to do so, Diehm suggests considering the knowledge and skills the students need to master a given standard, and using this information to write the goals.

SMART is a format often used in goal-writing. This acronym was first used in the business field in the early 1980s, began appearing in the therapy literature in the 1990s, and was suggested as an appropriate framework for IEP goal-writing in the late 2000s (Nobriga & St. Clair, 2018). SMART stands for Specific, Measureable, Attainable/Achievable, Relevant, and Timely. Diehm (2017) provides a tutorial for SLPs to ensure that their goals are SMART.

If a goal is specific, others reading the IEP will know what the student should do, in what context, with what materials, and with what help from someone else (e.g., the SLP or a parent).  A specific goal contains a verb that represents an observable behavior. For example, rather than identify, a clinician might use point to . A specific goal should include one target behavior. If a goal contains multiple behaviors, it can be difficult to ascertain whether or not the goal has been met. Torres (2013) suggests asking the following questions when writing a goal that is  specific.

• What are the student’s strengths?
• What are the student’s areas for growth?
• What skills contribute to the student’s strengths?
• What skills are needed to improve the areas for growth?
• What skills can the student use to compensate for deficits?
• What skills are needed that the SLP can help the student attain?
• What should be addressed first? Why?
• What tasks will the student complete to work on the skill?
• What supports will be provided?

A measurable goal must include an observable behavior (as noted in describing specific goals ), the level of support to be provided (as noted in describing specific goals), criteria, and the conditions under which the student will perform the behavior. The criteria need to make sense within the context of the goal. Percent accuracy is often used as criteria, which makes sense in a number of contexts. However, other criteria, such as frequency of a behavior or duration of a behavior, may be better criteria for measuring some targets. Torres (2013) recommends using the following questions to help ensure that a goal is  measurable.

• Can you define the skill that will determine whether or not the student is meeting the target, and can  the progress of that skill be measured?
• How will progress be measured?
• When you consider the goal accomplished?

When considering an attainable/achievable goal, if working in a school and writing an IEP,  a period of one year is the typical timeframe, as IEPs are re-written annually. In order to determine the attainability of a goal, consider clinical experience with students with similar profiles, the research literature, and collaboration with other professionals (Diehm, 2017). Also consider the amount of support the child currently needs to help determine whether or not the child is likely to attain the goal. Typically, a goal within the child’s  zone of proximal development , or what the child can do with support (Vygotsky, 1978), is considered achievable, whereas working on a target that the child does not perform even with support, may not be achievable, or may need to be written as something the child will do with support, albeit less support than is needed at baseline.

Relevant  goals should relate to educational standards. Including the specific standard to which the goal relates within the goal can help to highlight the relevance. A relevant goal also could be a goal that addresses an underlying skill needed to meet an educational standard or multiple educational standards. Torres suggests the following questions as a guide to writing  relevant  goals.

• Will achieving this goal serve a communicative function for the student, rather than just being something you can do with the student?
• Will this goal serve a purpose in the student’s life, considering the child’s diagnosis and social and cultural needs?
• Does the goal meet educational standards?

Timely  refers to the amount of time in which the child is expected to meet the goal. As noted in describing  attainable/achievable  goals, this is typically written as one year in schools. It may be appropriate to have a shorter timeframe for some goals, especially those for which the child is stimulable, or can do with help.

Despite learning the SMART framework during their graduate studies, many SLPs continue to experience challenges when writing goals (Nobriga & St. Clair, 2018). Nobriga and St. Clair developed a flowchart that can help clinicians overcome these challenges. Using this framework, the clinician first asks, “What is the behavior you want to teach?” Once the behavior is identified, the clinician ensures that the behavior is client appropriate, considering culture, functionality, and client and family preferences. Next, the clinician confirms that the behavior is specific. The clinician then ensures that the behavior is observable. The next consideration is that the behavior is within the client’s zone of proximal development;  that is, that the client can perform the behavior with help or scaffolding. Finally, the clinician determines whether or not the behavior is singular; that is, that it should not be imbedded or implied. If the behavior is not singular, but the client is ready to perform multiple skills simultaneously, the behavior could still be acceptable.

Goals should be constructed in collaboration with the student, family, and other professionals involved with the student. Regular education teachers can provide insight into what the student needs to be able to do in the classroom. Family members offer information regarding to what communication behaviors will benefit the student in the home and community. Students themselves should have the opportunity to give input into their own goals in order to ensure that the behaviors targeted will help the student feel more successful in academic and social situations.

Diehm, E. (2017). Writing measurable and academically relevant IEP Goals with 80% accuracy over three consecutive trials. Perspectives of the ASHA Special Interest Groups, Sig 16, 2, 34-44.

Kamhi, A. (2014). Improving clinical practices for children with language and learning disorders. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 45, 92-103.

Nobriga, C., & St. Clair, J. (2018). Training goal writing: A practical and systematic approach.  Perspectives of the ASHA Special Interest Groups, SIG 11, 3( 1) , 36-46.

Torres, I. (2013, September 9). Tricks to take the pain out of writing treatment goals.  ASHA Leader Live.  Retrieved from https://leader.pubs.asha.org/do/10.1044/tricks-to-take-the-pain-out-of-writing-treatment-goals/full/.

Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind and society: The development of higher psychological processes. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

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Home » Blog » General » Creating Effective Pragmatic Language Goals: Strategies for Speech Language Pathologists

Creating Effective Pragmatic Language Goals: Strategies for Speech Language Pathologists

As a Speech Language Pathologist (SLP), one of the key responsibilities is to help individuals develop effective communication skills. Pragmatic language, also known as social language, plays a crucial role in social interactions and is essential for successful communication. In this blog post, we will explore the importance of pragmatic language goals in speech therapy and discuss strategies for writing effective goals.

Understanding Pragmatic Language Goals

Pragmatic language refers to the social use of language, including the ability to understand and use verbal and nonverbal cues, initiate and maintain conversations, take turns, and interpret humor or sarcasm. These skills are vital for building relationships, making friends, and navigating social situations.

When setting pragmatic language goals, it is essential to be specific and target the specific skills that need improvement. By setting clear objectives, both the SLP and the individual receiving therapy can work towards a common goal.

Key Components of Effective Pragmatic Language Goals

1. Identifying the target skills:

When writing pragmatic language goals, it is crucial to identify the specific skills that need improvement. Some common target skills include:

• Understanding nonverbal cues: This involves interpreting facial expressions, body language, and tone of voice.
• Initiating and maintaining conversations: This includes starting conversations, staying on topic, and appropriately ending conversations.
• Taking turns during conversations: This involves waiting for a pause before responding and not interrupting others.
• Understanding and using appropriate body language: This includes maintaining eye contact, using appropriate gestures, and understanding personal space.
• Interpreting and responding to sarcasm or humor: This involves understanding figurative language, jokes, and sarcasm.

2. Setting measurable objectives:

Effective pragmatic language goals should be measurable, allowing progress to be tracked over time. To make goals measurable, consider:

• Using specific language: Clearly define the desired skill or behavior that needs improvement.
• Incorporating observable behaviors: Specify how progress will be observed or measured.
• Defining the desired level of proficiency: Set a clear expectation for the level of skill mastery.

3. Considering individual needs and abilities:

Each individual has unique strengths and weaknesses when it comes to pragmatic language skills. It is important to assess the student’s current abilities and tailor goals to meet their specific needs. By considering individual needs, goals can be more personalized and effective.

Strategies for Writing Pragmatic Language Goals

1. Using the SMART framework:

The SMART framework is a useful tool for writing effective goals. SMART stands for:

• Specific: Clearly define the target skill or behavior.
• Measurable: Establish how progress will be measured or observed.
• Achievable: Set goals that are realistic and attainable.
• Relevant: Ensure that the goals are relevant to the individual’s needs and abilities.
• Time-bound: Set a specific timeframe for achieving the goal.

2. Incorporating evidence-based practices:

Stay updated with current research and utilize evidence-based interventions when setting pragmatic language goals. By incorporating practices that have been proven effective, you can increase the likelihood of success.

3. Considering the student’s environment:

Pragmatic language skills are most effective when they can be applied in real-life situations. Collaborate with teachers and parents to identify relevant social contexts and incorporate them into the goals. This collaboration ensures consistency across different environments and maximizes the opportunities for practice.

Examples of Pragmatic Language Goals

Here are a few examples of pragmatic language goals:

Goal 1: The student will demonstrate understanding of nonverbal cues by correctly interpreting facial expressions in 8 out of 10 opportunities.

Goal 2: The student will initiate and maintain a conversation by asking at least two open-ended questions during a group discussion.

Goal 3: The student will take turns during conversations by waiting for a pause before responding in 9 out of 10 opportunities.

Effective pragmatic language goals are crucial for helping individuals develop the necessary skills for successful social communication. By understanding the key components of effective goals and implementing strategies such as the SMART framework and evidence-based practices, SLPs can make a significant impact on their clients’ communication abilities.

Start your EverydaySpeech Free trial today and explore a wide range of resources and activities to support pragmatic language development.

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Speech Therapy Goals: A Step By Step Guide

This step by step guide has everything you need for appropriate and successful speech therapy goals. It includes sample goals for expressive and receptive language, articulation, fluency, and more.

Speech Therapy: Getting Started

Table Of Contents

Before a goal is created, it is essential to determine what specific area of communication is in need of support. A speech therapist or speech language pathologist (SLP) will traditionally begin with a formal speech assessment.

The therapist will use a variety of assessment tools to screen for speech and language disorders.

How Do Speech Therapists Create Goals?

Based on the results of the initial assessments, the SLP will create goals based on the areas of communication that are in need of support.

Because speech and language is complex, no one goal or suggested treatment plan is the same. Goals are designed to be specific to the individual and are created to support speech development over stated time frames.

What Are The Different Types Of Speech Therapy Goals

Speech therapy goals tend to fall into any one of the following categories:

• Expressive Language
• Receptive Language
• Articulation
• Social Pragmatic

You’ll find examples of successful goals in each category below.

Expressive Language Goals In Speech Therapy

Expressive language refers to how your child uses speech to express themselves. Expressive language difficulties may present as poor eye contact, struggles when interacting with other children and a limited number of spoken words.

Here are some examples of expressive language goals:

• Learner will imitate 1-2 word utterances 10x times per session for 3 sessions.
• Learner will imitate 10 different two word phrases to request, protest, comment, or get attention over 3 consecutive sessions.
• Learner will use 2-3 word phrases 80% of the time to participate in play and shared book reading across 3 data collections.
• Learner can produce a complete, relevant sentence about a given stimuli in 80% of the time across 3 data collections.
• Learner can produce complete, grammatical sentences of 4+ words within structured activities in 80% of opportunities across 5 data collections.
• Learner will independently label age-appropriate objects with 80% accuracy across 3 separate data collections.
• Learner will name a described object with 80% accuracy across 3 separate data collections.
• Learner will answer what/where/when/who/why questions about pictures or play with 80% accuracy across 3 data collections.
• Learner answers how questions accurately to include multiple steps (for example: how do you brush your teeth? how do you feed your dog?) with 80% accuracy across 3 data collections.
• Learner can retell stories to include 80% of relevant details across 3 data collections.

Receptive Language Goals

Receptive language refers to a child’s ability to understand language. Receptive language difficulties often present similarly to expressive language difficulties, including poor eye contact and difficulty interacting with other children.

These are examples of receptive language goals:

• Learner will identify age-appropriate objects/pictures from a field of three with 80% accuracy for 3 data collections.
• Learner will identify 10 items from each category: body parts, clothing, personal care items, home items, school items, with 80% accuracy per category for 3 data collections.
• Learner will identify an action picture out of field of 3-4 in 80% of opportunities for 3 data collections.
• Learner will match objects or pictures to category when given 3-4 categories with 80% accuracy for 3 data collections.
• Learner will identify a picture that doesn’t belong in a category with 80% accuracy for 3 data collections.
• (client) will demonstrate comprehension of negation in sentences with 80% accuracy for 3 data collections.
• Learner will follow single step directions when paired with a gesture cue in 80% of opportunities for 3 data collections.
• Learner will follow single step directions without the support of gesture cues within familiar routines in 80% of opportunities for 3 data collections.
• Learner will follow 2-step directions when paired with a gesture cue in 80% of opportunities for 3 data collections.
• Learner will follow 2-step directions without the support of gesture cues within familiar routines in 80% of opportunities for 3 data collections.

Examples Of Articulation Goals In Speech Therapy

Articulation in speech therapy refers to a child’s ability to make sounds. This includes all elements involved in the production of sounds – the coordinated movements of the lips, tongue, teeth, palate, and respiratory system.

Here are examples of articulation goals in speech therapy:

• Learner will produce [desired sound] in the initial position in words/phrases/sentences with accurately in 80% of opportunities for 3 data collections.
• Learner will produce [desired sound] in the medial position in words/phrases/sentences accurately in 80% of opportunities for 3 data collections.
• Learner will produce [desired sound] in the final position in words/phrases/sentences accurately in 80% of opportunities for 3 data collections.
• Learner will produce single words with 80% intelligibility during therapy session for 3 data collections.
• Learner will produce sentences with 80% intelligibility during therapy session for 3 data collections.
• Learner will imitate vowel sounds in 80% of opportunities for 3 data collections.
• Learner will imitate consonants /p, b, m, t, d, n, k, g, h, w/ as single sounds in 80% of opportunities for 3 data collections.
• Learner will imitate /p, b, m, t, d, n, k, g, h, w/ in reduplicated CVCV combinations (dada, moo moo, etc) in 80% of opportunities for 3 data collections.
• Learner will imitate /p, b, m, t, d, n, k, g, h, w/ in variegated CVCV combinations (hippo, bunny, etc) in 80% of opportunities for 3 data collections.
• Learner will imitate /p, b, m, t, d, n, k, g, h, w/ in VC combinations (up, in) in 80% of opportunities for 3 data collections.

Fluency Goals

Fluency is used in Speech Pathology to describe sounds and words and phrases when joined together. This is essentially a child’s ability to speak easily and smoothly.

Fluency goals in speech therapy include:

• Learner will demonstrate appropriate skills for communication effectiveness in conversation (eye contact, appropriate rate of speech, appropriate vocal volume, appropriate listening/waiting) during 1 conversation for 3 data collections.
• Learner will identify fluency-enhancing strategies including slow speech and thinking of words before speaking) for in 80% of opportunities for 3 data collections.
• Learner will introduce himself to another person using appropriate eye contact and skills for effective communication independently at the beginning of 1 conversation for 5 data collections.
• Learner will identify appropriate modifications to speech production (fast/slow, bumpy/smooth, loud/quiet) with 80% accuracy for 3 data collections.
• Learner will share information about stuttering and stuttering treatment techniques with a peer or adult with no more than minimal prompting during 1 conversation across 3 data sessions.

Social Pragmatic Language Goals In Speech Therapy

A child’s pragmatic language involves the language skills that we use in everyday interactions with others. Conversational skills, non-verbal communication skills, understanding non-literal language, and interpreting and expressing emotions are all elements of social pragmatic language.

Typical social pragmatic goals include:

• Learn will demonstrate the ability to label emotions/feelings in communication partners or in pictures with 80% accuracy for 3 data collections.
• Learner will use words to express their feelings independently for 80% of opportunities across 3 data sessions.
• Learner will state a logical answer to what another person might be feeling based about a social situation with 80% accuracy for 3 data collections.
• Learner will identify a problem in a social setting/picture scene with 80% accuracy for 3 data collections.
• Learner will make inferences after hearing part of a story/social situation with 80% accuracy for 3 data collections.
• Learner will participate in turn-taking with the therapist for 5 turns per opportunity with a minimum of 5 opportunities across 3 data collections.
• Learner will identify signs of listener boredom or disinterest independently with 80% accuracy for 3 data collections.

Related Post : Social Pragmatic Goals In Speech Therapy: Everything You Need To Know

Examples Of Speech Therapy Goals In Practice

You can learn more about how these goals are formed and used in speech therapy in this video.

More Speech Therapy Resources

Speech Therapy For An Older Child

Speech Therapy At Home

Fig urative Language Activities

Allusion Sentence Examples And Activities

Thanks For Sharing!

Shawna Wingert is a former training and development professional turned education specialist, and has homeschooled her two children for the last ten years.Shawna has written four books about homeschooling unique learners and has been featured in homeschooling discussions on Today.com, The Mighty, Simple Homeschool, My Little Poppies and Raising Lifelong Leaners. 

You can find her online here at DifferentByDesignLearning.com.

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Canva for SLPs

Resources to Target Speech Therapy Goals and Objectives

07/25/2023 by Zuzel Brescher

Are you looking for free and editable resources to help your students measure their speech therapy goals? Canva has so many activities and worksheets that you can use to help your students understand, measure and track their goals. Keep reading till the end to get all the free templates to help your students understand their specific goals.

Target Speech and Language Goals with Canva

In Canva, speech-language pathologists can effortlessly create engaging materials, like flashcards, worksheets, and visual aids for your therapy sessions. There are a wide array of templates, customizable layouts, and images and graphics to target IEP goals. Whether you’re targeting  articulation  or  languag e, you can find fun and engaging helpful resources for your students.  Conversely, here are some of the goals you can work on:

Vocabulary Speech Therapy Goals:

Vocabulary speech therapy goals are all about building up your student’s word bank and expanding their word knowledge. When your students have a limited vocabulary, it is harder for them to express themselves in complete sentences. You might hear them using word fillers (such as “uhm”) or use non-specific words (i.e., “this” and “that”). Improve their overall language skills by working on vocabulary.

Introduce new words through different activities such as reading aloud stories and books with rich vocabularies. You can try playing games that involve word recognition and categorization, or using flashcards to learn new words. You can also provide clear definitions and examples of how to use the new words in context.

Syntax Speech Therapy Goals:

Working on syntax with your students can help improve their sentence structure and grammar. When you use Canva to target syntax, you’ll help your students create more coherent sentences.

Semantics Speech Therapy Goals:

Semantic speech therapy goals are all about expanding understanding and expression related to the meanings of words – what they represent. This includes enhancing skills in word categories like nouns, verbs, and adjectives. Explore synonyms and antonyms so they can have a robust vocabulary.

You can also target figurative language, like metaphors and similes. This is a great way to unlock creative expression in writing. Explore analogies to strengthen logical reasoning. Overall, semantic speech therapy aims to foster comprehensive language skills and facilitate effective communication.

Expressive Language Speech Therapy Goals:

These goals help your students express their thoughts, feelings, and ideas clearly and effectively. Students working on expressive language skills might use simple sentences. When you target expressive language goals, you’ll expand your student’s vocabulary. You’ll also help them with using more descriptive language and forming grammatically correct sentences. By setting expressive language speech therapy goals, you’ll boost your student’s confidence and ability to communicate with their friends and teachers. 

Receptive Language Speech Therapy Goals:

Listening is a key part of communication, and that’s where receptive language speech therapy goals come in. These goals focus on improving your student’s ability to understand spoken language and follow instructions. If they’re struggling to process auditory information, t arget receptive language goals. This will make a big difference by boosting their overall communication skills.

Pragmatic Speech Therapy Goals:

Pragmatic speech therapy goals include skills like turn-taking, initiating conversations, maintaining eye contact, joint attention, understanding body language, facial expressions, and using appropriate gestures. When you set pragmatic language goals, you can help your students through social interactions. Then, they will improve their conversational skills in social situations.

Articulation and Phonology Goals:

Did you know, you can target articulation goals and phonology goals in Canva? With Canva, you can create a treatment plan, as well as visuals and interactive activities. This will help improve their articulation skills.  There are tons of templates that target speech goals at the word level in Canva.

If you want to know more about specific goals that can be included in these areas, read below! If you want more, also leave a comment. I will create a blog post about sample goals you can use with your students that have specific needs.

Infographics for the Speech-Language Pathologist

To get more information about all of the different areas a speech therapist can target goals in a school setting, check out this infographic. It outlines which speech and language goals are commonly addressed. Hang up this infographic in your speech room or throughout your school!

Phonological Processes Infographic:

• This infographic includes information about the 7 most common phonological processes in speech therapy with examples. The following processes are currently on the infographic: backing, final consonant deletion, fronting, weak syllable reduction, cluster reduction, deaffrication, and gliding.
• You can edit this free template to include any other phonological processes that you feel should be included!

Speech-Language Pathologist Infographic :

• This speech infographic details some of the areas within the SLP’s scope of practice with a brief description for each one.
• The following are the areas included in this infographic: articulation (speech sounds), language, fluency (stuttering), pragmatics (social communication), voice, and dysphagia (feeding).
• This infographic can be printed at home and placed in your office, school, or classroom to inform students and teachers about what you work on in therapy

Why is it important for students to understand their speech and language therapy goals?

It’s so important for students to understand their goals in speech therapy! 🎯 When students understand their goals, they become engaged in therapy.  This is the best way to make them feel in control and empowered. They will feel excited and will want to improve as much as possible. 🗣️💪 

Which Canva Designs Can You Use to Track Goals?

Actually, there is good news! There are tons of Canva templates for speech therapists that can help your students understand their goals. Conveniently, you can download all of these resources into a printable PDF. Your next step is to look through this collection of templates: 

Setting Goals Worksheet

This simple goal setting worksheet is a creative way to inspire your students to think about their goals . This template incorporates the word “GOAL,” and asks the student to write the goals they would like to accomplish inside of the word “GOAL”. Then, they’ll have to write how exactly they will measure their goals. With this worksheet, students can:

• Brainstorm Goals: Generate ideas related to their desired outcomes.
• Reflect on Progress: Revisit the worksheet to review and reassess their goals periodically.

Goals for Speech Therapy Worksheet

Help your students own their progress with this Goals for Speech Therapy Worksheet. This template helps students identify their speech and language goals, which makes therapy sessions more engaging and student-driven. When students actively participate in setting their objectives, it fosters responsibility and motivation to smash them! 🎯 This template is available in both English and Spanish (for your ELL students!).

Keeping Track of My Speech Therapy Goals

Check out this awesome worksheet called “ Keeping Track of My Goals “! It’s super colorful and interactive, perfect for students in speech therapy. They can mark their progress by recording the date and coloring in squares based on correct answers. It’s a fun way to visually track improvement. And once they hit 100%, they know they’ve crushed their goal! This worksheet not only looks cool but also motivates students to aim for bigger achievements. This template is available in both English and Spanish .

Speech Therapy Goals Punch Card

Here’s an  alternative  that works great for younger students up to the fourth grade. Younger students, especially, love positive reinforcement and rewards. The Goal Punch Card template on Canva makes tracking and rewarding progress super fun for your students. With this template, you can:

• Set Milestones: Define specific milestones towards the ultimate goal.
• Reward Achievements: Offer a new punch on the card whenever a milestone is reached.
• Boost Motivation: Encourage students to complete tasks to earn their rewards.

These Speech Therapy Goals Punch Cards are perfect for tracking goals in a fun and simple way. It’s a great visual tool that helps students to stay on track with their goals. The punch card has boxes for them to mark off when they complete each goal. Each box represents a certain level of success, and once all the boxes are filled, they know they’ve achieved their goal! It also encourages students to aim higher and work towards bigger goals. This punch card is available in Canva for free!

SMART Goal Setting Reading Comprehension Worksheet

Smart goals poster.

Here is a handy poster that you can use with your high school and middle school students so they can understand what a  SMART goal  is.

What is a SMART goal?

A SMART goal is one that is Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. These are the key elements that help in creating goals that are clear, well-defined, and actionable. By incorporating these attributes into your goal-setting process, you make it easier to track progress along the way. So, remember, when setting goals, be SMART! 😊

Now that you have downloaded the poster, it’s time to have your students understand what a SMART goal is.

To begin with, this worksheet starts by explaining what a SMART goal is – Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. The worksheet then walks them through the steps of writing their own SMART goal. It gives some examples to help students understand each step better as they work through it. At the end of the worksheet, there’s space for reflection, encouraging students to evaluate their learning process and think critically. This worksheet is a fantastic tool to help students identify and achieve meaningful goals in their studies! Check it out today!

Here is a goal bank with some examples of SMART goals you can use in your speech room:

SMART Expressive Language Therapy Goals

• Within 3 months, the student will improve their use of descriptive language by incorporating at least three adjectives in each spoken sentence, at least 70% of the time. The student will be provided with moderate visual prompts, as measured during conversations with the speech pathologist.
• By the end of the quarter, the student will improve their expressive language skills by using conjunctions (i.e., and, but) to create compound sentences in a structured situation with minimal cueing, 60% of the time.

Receptive Language Therapy Goals

• ​By the end of the marking period, the student will improve receptive language skills by identifying 15 new words related to science at least 60% of the time when provided with minimal cueing, as measured by informal criterion-referenced tests created by the speech pathologist.
• Within 6 weeks, the student will improve their receptive language skills by following familiar single-step directions that do not include modifiers with at least 60% accuracy, as measured during unstructured situations in the speech therapy room. 
• By the end of 4 months, the student will improve their receptive language skills by understanding and identifying correct responses to wh- questions (i.e., who, what, when, where), with 70% accuracy provided with moderate visual and verbal cueing and measured by a criterion-referenced informal assessment provided by the speech pathologist. 
• By the end of the school year, the student will improve receptive language skills by using context clues to understand the meaning of unknown words in conversation. The student will attain at least 70% accuracy, as measured by informal assessments created by the speech pathologist.

SMART Articulation Therapy Goals

• ​Within 6 weeks, the student will improve articulation skills by accurately producing the /r/ sound in the initial position of words with 80% accuracy. The student will be provided with visual cues by the speech pathologist in conversational speech. 
• At the end of the marking period, the student will improve articulation skills by producing the /s/ sound in the final position of words in short sentences provided by the speech pathologist with 70% accuracy and a moderate visual and verbal cue. 

Phonological Processes Therapy Goals:

• Within 6 months, the student will improve intelligibility by reducing the use of final consonant deletion at the word level in at least 80% of the target words presented by the speech pathologist when provided with moderate visual cues. 
• At the end of the marking period, the student will improve intelligibility by reducing the use of consonant cluster reduction in the initial position of words with 70% accuracy when presented with picture cards and/or worksheets and given moderate cues.

SMART Pragmatic Language Therapy Goals:

• Within 3 months, the student will initiate at least three conversations with peers during recess or lunchtime to improve social communication skills, 40% of the time in unstructured conversations, as measured by their peer using a conversational skills rubric. 
• By the end of the marking period, the student will improve social communication skills by taking turns independently, 80% of the time, as measured during a game in group therapy sessions.
• Within 3 months, the student will identify and label emotions in themselves and others in group therapy sessions with 70% accuracy, as measured by informal assessments provided by the speech pathologist. 

• Within 3 months, the student will improve expressive language skills by correctly using subject-verb agreement in sentences with 90% accuracy in structured language exercises as measured by informal assessments provided by the speech pathologist. 
• By the end of the current IEP, the student will improve expressive language skills by increasing sentence complexity at least 50% of the time.  The student will increase sentence complexity by using at least two prepositional phrases in their sentences during unstructured conversations with the speech pathologist. 
• By the end of the school year, the student will correctly use possessive pronouns in structured conversations approximately 50% of the time, as measured during speech therapy sessions. 
• By the end of the marking period, the student will increase their expressive vocabulary by practicing context clues to infer the meanings of unfamiliar words found in reading materials provided by the teacher.  The student will correctly identify the meaning of these words approximately 60% of the time with moderate cues. 
• By the end of 3 months, the student will improve their vocabulary skills by using the EET to describe unfamiliar vocabulary words with 50% accuracy when provided with moderate verbal and visual cues.
• By the end of the semester, the student will correctly identify 20 common objects with 50% accuracy when provided with moderate phonemic cues and provided with pictures of these common objects. 
• Within 6 months, the student will improve their vocabulary skills by identifying vocabulary related to time and sequence approximately 60% of the time. The student will be provided with moderate cues and reading materials from the classroom teacher

Embrace creativity with Canva templates to streamline your work as a speech pathologist. These specially designed templates can be great data collection tools to track language development, social skills, and short story comprehension. There are so many more short-term objectives you can target with these templates, such as figurative language and main idea. By using these templates, you’ll save time and provide your students with a more engaging and personalized learning experience. Take the first step towards a more productive and fulfilling speech therapy journey with Canva templates today!

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432+ Free Measurable IEP Goals and Objectives Bank

If you want to save yourself time writing your IEP’s you’ve come to the right place. Here is a 432+ free IEP goal bank to make your life easier writing your speech therapy goals and to save you time.

IEP Goal Bank for Speech Therapy Goals

Articulation, functional life skills, expressive language, receptive language, auditory discrimination, phonological awareness, social skills/pragmatics.

• Augmentative Alternative Communication (AAC)

Figurative Language

Written language, intelligibility, speech therapy goals for articulation.

Given 20 sounds and a verbal prompt or model , STUDENT will articulate the sound(s) of / / at the isolation level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 20 sounds, STUDENT will independently  articulate the sound(s) of / / at the isolation level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 20 words or pictures and a verbal prompt or model , STUDENT will articulate the sound(s) of / / at the syllable level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 20 words or pictures, STUDENT will independently  articulate the sound(s) of / / at the syllable level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 20 words or pictures and a verbal prompt or model , STUDENT will articulate the sound(s) of / / in all positions of words at the word level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 20 words or pictures, STUDENT will independently articulate the sound(s) of / / in all positions of words at the word level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 20 words or pictures and a verbal prompt or model , STUDENT will articulate the sound(s) of / / in all positions of words at the phrase level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

Given 20 words or pictures, STUDENT will independently articulate the sound(s) of / / in all positions of words at the phrase level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 20 words or pictures and a verbal prompt or model , STUDENT will articulate the sound(s) of / / in all positions of words at the sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

Given 20 words or pictures, STUDENT will independently articulate the sound(s) of / / in all positions of words at the sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a reading passage, STUDENT will independently  articulate the sound(s) of / / in all positions of words at the reading level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a reading passage, STUDENT will independently retell the story by articulating the sound(s) of / / in all positions of words at the conversational level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a reading passage, STUDENT will independently  answer WH questions by articulating the sound(s) of / / in all positions of words at the conversational level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a conversational topic, STUDENT will independently articulate the sound(s) of / / in all positions of words at the conversational level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a conversational topic, STUDENT will self-monitor  articulation of the sound(s) of / / in all positions of words at the conversational level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a classroom discourse, STUDENT will generalize  articulation of the sound(s) of / / in all positions of words at the conversational level  outside of the therapy setting with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

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Speech therapy goals for phonology.

• Substitution
• Assimilation
• Syllable Structure

-Substitution

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce age-appropriate bilabial  (i.e., /p, b, m/) and alveolar sounds  (i.e., /t, d, n)   in  words  to reduce the process of backing  at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce velar sounds (i.e., /k, g/)   in  words  to reduce the process of fronting  at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce age-appropriate consonants /r, l/ instead of /w, j/  in  words  to reduce the process of gliding  (i.e., “wabbit” for “rabbit”) at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce stop sounds (i.e., /t, p/)   in  words  to reduce the process of stopping  at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce the sounds /l, er/  in  words  to reduce the process of vowelization  at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce all age-appropriate phonemes in  words  to reduce the process of affrication  (i.e., using /ch or j/ for non-affricate “ jime ”  for “dime”) at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce the sounds /ch, j/  in  words  to reduce the process of deaffrication  (i.e., replacing /ch or j/ for fricative or stop “ships”  for “chips”) at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce the alveolar sounds   in  words (t, d, n)   to reduce the process of alveolarization  (i.e., using alveolar for non-alveolar “tan”  for “pan”) at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce the palatal sounds   in  words (sh, zh)   to reduce the process of depalatalization  (i.e., using non-palatal for palatal “fit”  for “fish”) at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce the labial sounds in  words (p, b)   to reduce the process of labialization  (i.e., using labial for non-labial “pie”  for “tie”) at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Assimilation

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce all age-appropriate phonemes  in  2-3 syllable words  to reduce the process of labial assimilation   (i.e., using labial /p, b, m,w/ for non-labial “ peb ” for “pen”) at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce all age-appropriate phonemes  in  2-3 syllable words  to reduce the process of velar assimilation   (i.e., using velar /k, g, ng/ for non-velar “kug” for “cup”) at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce all age-appropriate phonemes  in  2-3 syllable words  to reduce the process of nasal assimilation   (i.e., using nasal /m, n, ng/ for non-nasal “mom” for “mop”) at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce all age-appropriate phonemes  in  2-3 syllable words  to reduce the process of alveolar assimilation   (i.e., using alveolar /t, d, n, l, s, z/ for non-alveolar “tot” for “toss”) at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce the nasal sounds in  words (m, n)   to reduce the process of denasalization  (i.e., using non-nasal for nasal “doze”  for “nose”) at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce the final voiced consonants in  words (b, d)   to reduce the process of final consonant devoicing  (i.e., using voiceless final consonant for voiced final consonant “pick” for “pig”) at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce the correct phoneme in  words  to reduce the process of coalescence  (i.e., using two phonemes for one phoneme that has similar features “foon” for “spoon”) at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce all the phonemes  in  words  to reduce the process of reduplication  (i.e., when complete or incomplete syllable is repeated “baba” for “bottle”) at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Syllable Structure

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce all age-appropriate phonemes  in  2-3 syllable words  to reduce the process of cluster reduction  (i.e., “top” for “stop”) at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce age-appropriate consonants in the initial position of words  to reduce  initial consonant deletion  at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce age-appropriate consonants in the  medial position of words  to reduce  medial consonant deletion  at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce age-appropriate consonants in the  final position of words  to reduce final consonant deletion  at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce all syllables in two-syllable and 3-syllable words  to reduce  weak syllable deletion  at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object to describe, STUDENT will  produce only the phonemes in the word to reduce  epenthesis  (i.e., adding the “uh” sound between two consonants “bu- lue ” for “blue”) at the word, phrase, or sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Speech Therapy Goals for Deaf / Hard of Hearing

Given a hearing amplification system, STUDENT will  wear it consistently  and transport the teacher unit to all classroom teachers  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a hearing amplification system, STUDENT will  recharge it daily  at  the end of the school day ready for the next school day  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a hearing amplification system, STUDENT will  advocate  with  Speech Therapist or classroom teacher  if there are any problems with the hearing amplification system with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given hearing aids, STUDENT will  clean and dry ear molds  using the appropriate materials (i.e., soap, pipe cleaners, towels) once a week  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given hearing aids, STUDENT will  detect a weak battery  and  change the battery  as needed with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Speech Therapy Goals for Stuttering

• Desensitization
• Stuttering Modifications Techniques
• Fluency Shaping Techniques
• Secondary Behaviors

-Desensitization

Given 15 sentences with “bumpy” or “smooth” speech, STUDENT will identify if the  clinician’s speech  is “bumpy” or “smooth” with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a 2 minute tape-recording of HIS/HER reading or conversational speech with “bumpy” or “smooth” speech, STUDENT will identify if HIS/HER speech is “bumpy” or “smooth” with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 15 sentences with fast or slow speech, STUDENT will identify if the  clinician’s speech  is fast or slow with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.   

Given a 2 minute tape-recording of HIS/HER reading or conversational speech with fast or slow speech, STUDENT will identify if  HIS/HER speech  is fast or slow with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 15 sentences with random disfluencies, STUDENT will identify the disfluencies in the clinician’s speech with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a 2 minute tape-recording of HIS/HER reading or conversational speech with random disfluencies, STUDENT will identify the disfluencies in  HIS/HER speech with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Stuttering Modifications Techniques

Given knowledge, examples, and information about stuttering modification techniques (cancellation, pull-out, preparatory set), STUDENT will name and describe each stuttering modification technique  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 20 words, STUDENT will use the cancellation method to minimize disfluencies at the  word level  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 10 modeled sentences, STUDENT will use the cancellation method to repeat the sentences with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 20 sentences, STUDENT will use the cancellation method to minimize disfluencies at the  sentence level  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a reading passage, STUDENT will use the cancellation method to minimize disfluencies during  reading  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a conversational topic, STUDENT will use the cancellation method to minimize disfluencies during  a conversation  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 20 words, STUDENT will use the pull-out method to minimize disfluencies at the  word level  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 10 modeled sentences, STUDENT will use the pull-out method to repeat the sentences with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 20 sentences, STUDENT will use the pull-out method to minimize disfluencies at the  sentence level  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a reading passage, STUDENT will use the pull-out  method to minimize disfluencies during  reading  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.   

Given a conversational topic, STUDENT will use the pull-out  method to minimize disfluencies during  a conversation  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 20 words, STUDENT will use the preparatory set method to minimize disfluencies at the  word level  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 10 modeled sentences, STUDENT will use the preparatory set method to repeat the sentences with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 20 sentences, STUDENT will use the preparatory set method to minimize disfluencies at the  sentence level  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a reading passage, STUDENT will use the preparatory set method to minimize disfluencies during  reading  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.   

Given a conversational topic, STUDENT will use the preparatory set method to minimize disfluencies during  a conversation  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

-Fluency Shaping Techniques

Given knowledge, examples, and information about fluency shaping techniques (easy onset, light articulatory contact, slow rate), STUDENT will name and describe each fluency shaping technique  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 20 words, STUDENT will use the easy onset technique  to minimize disfluencies at the  word level  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 10 modeled sentences, STUDENT will use the easy onset technique  to repeat the sentences with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 20 sentences, STUDENT will use the easy onset technique to minimize disfluencies at the  sentence level  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a reading passage, STUDENT will use the easy onset technique  to minimize disfluencies during  reading  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a conversational topic, STUDENT will use the easy onset technique  to minimize disfluencies during  a conversation  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 20 words, STUDENT will use the light articulatory contact technique  to minimize disfluencies at the  word level  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 10 modeled sentences, STUDENT will use the light articulatory contact technique  to repeat the sentences with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 20 sentences, STUDENT will use the light articulatory contact technique  to minimize disfluencies at the  sentence level with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a reading passage, STUDENT will use the light articulatory contact technique  to minimize disfluencies during  reading  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a conversational topic, STUDENT will use the light articulatory contact technique  to minimize disfluencies during  a conversation  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 20 words, STUDENT will use the slow rate technique  to minimize disfluencies at the  word level  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 10 modeled sentences, STUDENT will use the slow rate technique  to repeat the sentences with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given 20 sentences, STUDENT will use the slow rate technique  to minimize disfluencies at the  sentence level  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a reading passage, STUDENT will use the slow rate technique  to minimize disfluencies during  reading  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a conversational topic, STUDENT will use the slow rate technique  to minimize disfluencies during  a conversation  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

-Secondary Behaviors

Given knowledge, examples, and video of oneself, STUDENT will identify and name  each of their  secondary behaviors  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a structured activity, STUDENT will identify and reduce  each of their  secondary behaviors  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a conversation, STUDENT will identify and reduce  each of their  secondary behaviors  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Speech Therapy Goals for Life Skills

• Conversation
• Social Skills

Given a functional symbol (cooking, community , safety, etc.), STUDENT will  match identical symbols  given a choice of 4 options wit 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a functional symbol (cooking, community , safety, etc.), STUDENT will  match symbols to actual objects  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a functional classroom symbol, STUDENT will demonstrate knowledge of the symbol by performing an action or going to the appropriate place when shown a symbo l  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a simple verbal directive (sit, stand, give, go), STUDENT will demonstrate knowledge of verbal directive by performing the action  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 10 pictures or objects for 2 different categories, STUDENT will identify the categories and  categorize the picture or objects  into 2 different categories  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an event or object, STUDENT will  describe the event or object using at least 3 descriptors  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an event or story, STUDENT will  retell the event or story  using appropriate  sequencing  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a social situation or role-play scenario, STUDENT will independently express HIS/HER  wants or needs , such as stop, help, want, need, thirsty, toilet, etc. using HIS/HER AAC device, a gesture, or a sign with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a visual or social situation, STUDENT will label the other person’s feelings and/or emotions based on their facial expressions and body language  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a yes/no question concerning social/community settings , STUDENT will correctly answer the yes/no question  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given two objects, STUDENT will identify the  similarities and differences between the objects  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or a short story, STUDENT will explain the meaning of the figurative language and idioms  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Conversation

Given a new person entering or leaving a situation, STUDENT will independently volunteer social greetings and farewells , such as “hi” and “bye” with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a social situation or role-play scenario, STUDENT will make a statement or ask a question to initiate a conversation with a familiar listener with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a social situation or role-play scenario, STUDENT will make a statement or ask a question to initiate a conversation with an unfamiliar listener with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a conversation, STUDENT will maintain appropriate eye contact when speaking to another person 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

Given a conversation, STUDENT will use an appropriate volume based on the social situation  they are in with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a conversation, STUDENT will make a statement or ask a question  to maintain the topic of conversation with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a conversation, STUDENT will take turns speaking to provide a give and take conversation  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

Given a conversation, STUDENT will ask 1 or 2 follow-up questions  to ensure the conversation is two-sided with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a conversation, STUDENT will demonstrate the ability to provide the appropriate amount of information  during a conversational exchange with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a conversation, STUDENT will use a statement to end the conversation appropriately with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

-Social Skills

Given a social situation or role-play scenario, STUDENT will maintain personal space at least an arm’s length distance between HIMSELF/HERSELF and others across all settings with no more than 1 verbal prompt  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a classroom discourse or conversation, STUDENT will actively listen to the speaker by facing the speaker, keeping mouth and body still, nodding head to show listening, asking questions and/or making on-topic comments  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a social situation or role-play scenario, STUDENT will solve a social problem  by identifying the problem, developing possible solutions, and choosing the best solution  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a social situation or role-play scenario, STUDENT will advocate for help  by appropriately  gaining the teacher’s attention, verbally asking for help, using clear and concise sentences  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a social situation or role-play scenario, STUDENT will accurately  identify another’s perspective  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a social situation or role-play scenario, STUDENT will protest using appropriate language  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a social situation or role-play scenario, STUDENT will express HIS/HER feeling , such as I am frustrated, sick, happy, etc. using appropriate language  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

Given a social situation or role-play scenario, STUDENT will identify expected vs. unexpected behaviors across multiple settings  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a social situation or role-play scenario, STUDENT will produce HIS/HER own ideas ( not mimicking or copying others’ ideas ) when entering or joining a conversation  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a social situation or role-play scenario, STUDENT will give and accept compliments  appropriately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a social situation or role-play scenario, STUDENT will demonstrate comprehension of a variety of  verbal and nonverbal social cues  (e.g., eye rolls, checking watches, reduced eye contact, overt statements, etc.) by adjusting HIS/HER behavior based on these social cues  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Speech Therapy Goals for Expressive Language Delay

• Utterance Expansion
• Narrative Development
• Gestures/Signs
• Categorizations
• Similarities
• Differences
• Comparisons
• Multiple Meanings
• Grammar Structure
• Vocabulary Definitions

-Morphology

Given a writing or speaking task, STUDENT will use present progressive-tense verbs  (i.g., walking, running, laughing) appropriately   in a sentence or conversation  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a writing or speaking task, STUDENT will use regular/irregular plural markers  (i.g., apples/feet) appropriately   in a sentence or conversation  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a writing or speaking task, STUDENT will use article/number agreement  (i.g., an apple/the boys) appropriately   in a sentence or conversation  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a writing or speaking task, STUDENT will use present-tense verbs  (i.g., give, go, drink) appropriately   in a sentence or conversation  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a writing or speaking task, STUDENT will use future-tense verbs  (i.g., will drive, will stop, will park) appropriately   in a sentence or conversation  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a writing or speaking task, STUDENT will use regular/irregular past-tense verbs  (i.g., walked/ran) appropriately   in a sentence or conversation  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or story, STUDENT will use nouns to answer WHO or WHAT questions  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or story, STUDENT will use  verbs  to tell actions  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or story, STUDENT will use prepositional phrase  to answer WHERE questions  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or story, STUDENT will use prepositional phrase or adjective  to answer HOW questions  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object or picture, STUDENT will use   2 words to call attention to an object (e.g., “this ball”, “my shoe”)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object or picture, STUDENT will use 2 words to show the disappearance of an object   (e.g., “no cracker”, “apple all gone”)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object or picture, STUDENT will use   2 words to indicate recurrence  of an object   (e.g., “more cracker”)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object or picture, STUDENT will use 2 words that contain an adjective and a noun  (e.g., “big bear”)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object or picture, STUDENT will use   2 words to show possession of an object   (e.g., “Daddy car”)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object or picture, STUDENT will use   2 words to show action object  (e.g., “read book “)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object or picture, STUDENT will use   2 words to show the location of an object   (e.g., “dog car”)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object or picture, STUDENT will use   2 words to show agent action  (e.g., “dog jump”)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object or picture, STUDENT will use   2 words to show emotion  (e.g., “baby tired”)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object or picture, STUDENT will use   2 words to achieve the desired end  of an object   (e.g., “go home”)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given an object or picture, STUDENT will say 3 to 4-word utterances  (e.g., “dog sitting in car”)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an activity, picture, or story, STUDENT will form grammatically correct simple sentences  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

Given an activity, picture, or story, STUDENT will use correct subject-verb agreement in sentences  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

Given an activity, picture, or story, STUDENT will use all necessary propositions in sentences  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

Given an activity, picture, or story, STUDENT will use compound sentences  (i.e., and, but, or, etc.)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an activity, picture, or story, STUDENT will use correct subject-verb agreement  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Utterance Expansion

Given an object or picture, STUDENT will use 2-3 word utterances  to describe the object or picture  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an opportunity to ask a question/comment/describe, STUDENT will use 4-5 word utterances  to ask a question/comment/describe with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an orally presented sentence with missing words, STUDENT will identify missing words (i.e., articles, prepositions. etc.)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an opportunity to ask a question/comment/describe, STUDENT will include all necessary words in a sentence  to ask a question/comment/describe with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object or picture, STUDENT will use descriptive words  to describe the object or picture  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an opportunity to express a want or need, STUDENT will use complete grammatically correct sentence  to express HIS/HER want or need  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an opportunity to tell past events, STUDENT will use simple complete grammatically correct sentence  to tell about past events  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an opportunity to express a want or need, STUDENT will use 2-4 words  to express HIS/HER want or need  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an opportunity to comment or share information, STUDENT will use2-4 words  to express HIS/HER comment or share information  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a wh-question, STUDENT will use2-4 words  to answer simple Wh-questions  (i.e., who, what, when, where, why, how)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Narrative Development

Given visual cues (e.g., sequencing cards) and a story, STUDENT will sequence  the story  including problem and solution  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a story or activity, STUDENT will sequence  the story or activity that includes # parts  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an opportunity to tell a story, STUDENT will use  descriptive language  to tell their story  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an opportunity to tell a story from their past, STUDENT will  tell their story  with the appropriate number of details and in the right order  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a story or activity, STUDENT will use sequence words to verbally order a story or activity (e.g., first, next, then, after, last) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Gestures/Signs

Given a want or request, STUDENT will pair vocalizations with gestures  when indicating a want or requesting an object  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a want for “more”, STUDENT will use words and/or signs  to  ask for “more”  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a task or activity, STUDENT will use words and/or signs  to  indicate HE/SHE is “finished”  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a difficult task or activity, STUDENT will use words and/or signs  to  ask for “help”  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a “yes” or “no” question, STUDENT will use words and/or signs  to  answer the question with “yes” or “no”  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 10 common objects or pictures, STUDENT will verbally label the item  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a common object, noun, or action, STUDENT will verbally label the item  in  a phrase or sentence  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 10 common words, STUDENT will verbally name the word  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 10 common words, STUDENT will verbally name the word  in  a phrase or sentence with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object or picture, STUDENT will describe the object or picture  by stating the function of the item with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 10 words, STUDENT will describe the object or picture  by stating the function of the word with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Categorizations

Given a category, STUDENT will name (3-5) items  in that category (e.g., school items, home items, clothing, animals, colors, toys, etc.)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

Given 3 to 5 items in a category (e.g., dog, cat, fish, etc.), STUDENT will identify the category  (e.g., school items, home items, clothing, animals, colors, toys, etc.)   and explain their relationships  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given  3 to 5 items, STUDENT will identify the item that does not belong in the group and explain why  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a category, STUDENT will name (3-5) items  in that category  and (1) item that does not belong in that category  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Similarities

Given 3 to 5 pictures, STUDENT will select 2 similar pictures  and  explain the similarities  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 3 to 5 words verbally, STUDENT will select 2 similar pictures  and  explain the similarities  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Differences

Given 3 to 5 pictures, STUDENT will select the different picture  and  explain the differences  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a list of 3 to 5 words verbally, STUDENT will identify the different word  and  explain the differences  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 3 to 5 words verbally, STUDENT will identify the different word  and  explain the differences  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a word pair verbally, STUDENT will explain the primary difference  between the  two words  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Comparisons

Given two object pictures, STUDENT will compare likeness(es)  and difference(s) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given two spoken words, STUDENT will compare likeness(es)  and difference(s) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given two concepts (e.g. flying vs. driving), STUDENT will compare likeness(es)  and difference(s) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

-Multiple Meanings

Given 2 pictures that represent different meanings of the same word , STUDENT will provide a definition for each  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 2 sentences that represent different meanings of the same word, STUDENT will provide a definition for each  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a multiple meaning word , STUDENT will provide 2 or more definitions for the  multiple meaning word  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Attributes

Given an object or picture, STUDENT will describe the object or picture  by identifying a minimum of (3) attributes (e.g., color, size, number etc.) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object or picture and asked a question, STUDENT will answer the question  by identifying a minimum of (5) attributes (e.g., color, size, number etc.) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 10 items presented verbally, STUDENT will describe the object or picture  by identifying a minimum of (3) attributes (e.g., color, size, number etc.) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Grammar Structure

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will say a complete sentence using articles (i.e., “a”, “an”, “the”, and “some”) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will say a complete sentence using demonstrative adjectives (i.e., “this”, “that”, “these”, and “those”) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will say a complete sentence using plural nouns (i.e., s, es, and irregular plural forms) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will say a complete sentence using possessive nouns (i.e., “the girl’s book”) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will say a complete sentence using subject pronouns  (i.e., “I”, “he”, “she”, “you”, “we”, “they”) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will say a complete sentence using object pronouns  (i.e., “me”, “him”, “her”, “you”, “us”, “them”) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will say a complete sentence using possessive pronouns  (i.e., “my”, “mine”, “his”, “her/hers”, “you/yours”, “our/ours”, “their/theirs”) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will say a complete sentence using reflexive pronouns  (i.e., “myself”, “himself”, “herself”, “yourself”, “yourselves”, “ourselves”, “themselves”) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will say a complete sentence using present progressive verb tense  (i.e., “The girl is running”) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will say a complete sentence using past progressive verb tense  (i.e., “The girl was running”) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will say a complete sentence using present tense “s” and “es” marker  (i.e., “The girl runs”) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will say a complete sentence using “has”/”have”  (i.e., “The girl has a book”) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will say a complete sentence using regular past tense  (i.e., “The boy waited for the bus.”) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will say a complete sentence using irregular past tense  (i.e., “ran”, “drove”, “drank”) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will say a complete sentence using conjunctions  (i.e., “and”, “or”, “but”, “because”, “if”, “since”) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will say a complete sentence using future tenses  (i.e., “The boy will go to school”) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will say a complete sentence using negative sentence structures  (i.e., “will not/won’t”, “does not/doesn’t”) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will ask yes/no questions  (i.e., “Is the boy hurt?”) in a complete sentence  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will ask WH questions  (i.e., “What is the girl doing?”) in a complete sentence  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will say a complete sentence using comparatives  (i.e., “The kitty is smaller than the tiger”) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or story, STUDENT will say a complete sentence using superlatives  (i.e., “That is the best cookie.”) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an idiom with a visual cue, STUDENT will  accurately describe the meaning of the idiom   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given an idiom verbally with no visual cue, STUDENT will  accurately describe the meaning of the idiom  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given an idiom verbally, STUDENT will identify a social situation where the idiom may be used appropriately  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

-Vocabulary Definitions

Given 5 words with picture cues, STUDENT will define the word correctly  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object or picture, STUDENT will use 2-3 critical features  to describe the object or picture  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an emotional expression picture or story, STUDENT will use vocabulary to clearly  describe the feelings, ideas, or experiences  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or word, STUDENT will identify synonyms  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or word, STUDENT will identify antonyms  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 5 identified words in sentences, STUDENT will provide a synonym/antonym  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a story with highlighted words, STUDENT will provide a synonym/antonym for each highlighted word  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 10 pictures, STUDENT will match opposite pictures in pairs (i.e., happy/sad, up/down)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object, picture, or word, STUDENT will identify the opposite  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an object or picture, STUDENT will describe the object or picture  by naming the item, identify attributes (color, size, etc.), function, or number  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a reading task, STUDENT will define unfamiliar words using context clues  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given common academic vocabulary, STUDENT will define prefix and/or suffix  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given common academic vocabulary, STUDENT will define the vocabulary word using a complete sentence with correct grammar  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Speech Therapy Language Goals

• Following Directions
• Answering Questions
• Association
• Multiple Meaning
• Prepositions

-Vocabulary

Speech therapy goals for vocabulary.

Given 10 common nouns, STUDENT will identify the correct noun  by  pointing to the appropriate picture  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 10 common verbs, STUDENT will identify the  correct verb  by  pointing to the appropriate picture  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 10 common adjectives, STUDENT will identify the  correct adjective  by  pointing to the appropriate picture (size, shape, color, texture)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 3 to 5 pictures, STUDENT will identify the  category items  by  pointing/grouping pictures into categories  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Following Directions

Given manipulatives (e.g., object, paper, pencil, scissors), STUDENT will follow a  1-step direction  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given manipulatives (e.g., object, paper, pencil, scissors), STUDENT will follow  2-step directions  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 2-step directions, STUDENT will follow the directions  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given manipulatives (e.g., object, paper, pencil, scissors), STUDENT will follow  3-step directions  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 3-step directions, STUDENT will follow the directions  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given manipulatives (e.g., object, paper, pencil, scissors), STUDENT will follow  multi-step directions  with location modifiers (i.e., spatial concepts)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given manipulatives (e.g., object, paper, pencil, scissors), STUDENT will follow  multi-step directions  with quantity modifiers (i.e., numbers, more/less)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given manipulatives (e.g., object, paper, pencil, scissors), STUDENT will follow  multi-step directions  with quality modifiers (i.e., size, color, shape)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given manipulatives (e.g., object, paper, pencil, scissors), STUDENT will follow  multi-step directions  with pronoun modifiers (i.e., he, she, him, her, they, them)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given verbal or written directions, STUDENT will identify the action words in the directions (e.g., “Read the book”…the action word is read)with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given verbal directions, STUDENT will follow conditional directions  (e.g., “If you are wearing a red shirt, stand up.”)with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Answering Questions

Given a story, activity, or classroom discussion, STUDENT will answer “yes or no” questions  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a story, activity, or classroom discussion, STUDENT will answer WH questions  (i.e., who, what, when, where, why, how)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a verbal prompt, STUDENT will select and hand clinician the requested object or picture  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 3 objects or pictures at a time, STUDENT will select and hand clinician the requested object or picture  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 5 objects or pictures at a time, STUDENT will select and hand clinician the requested object or picture  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 5 objects or pictures at a time and given a function, STUDENT will point to the appropriate object or picture  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 5 action pictures at a time and given an action, STUDENT will point to the appropriate action picture  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Association

Given 5 objects or pictures at a time (e.g., ball, bat, car, fork, and ring) and asked what item is associated with … (e.g., with a seatbelt), STUDENT will select an item that is associated with the objects or pictures  (e.g., car)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a word verbally, STUDENT will point to the appropriate object or picture associated with that word (e.g., ball/bat, fork/plate) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a category, STUDENT will correctly sort objects/pictures in that category  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 3 items in a category and 3 categories to choose from, STUDENT will correctly sort objects/pictures into the appropriate  category  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 3 different categories, STUDENT will correctly sort objects/pictures into each different  category  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 3 to 5 objects or pictures, STUDENT will select 2 similar objects or pictures  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 3 to 5 word verbally, STUDENT will select 2 similar words  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 3 to 5 objects or pictures and an attribute (e.g, color, size, shape, number, texture, etc.), STUDENT will 1 object or picture that does not share that same attribute  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 3 to 5 words and an attribute (e.g, color, size, shape, number, texture, etc.), STUDENT will 1 word  that does not share that same attribute  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Multiple Meaning

Given 3 to 5 objects or pictures and a multiple meaning word, STUDENT will select 2 objects or pictures  that represent different meanings of that word  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a multiple meaning word verbally, STUDENT will select 2 correct meanings from a group of 4 written choices  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 10 objects or pictures and a verbal description of a word, STUDENT will select the correct object or picture  to match the given verbal description  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 10 words and a verbal description of a word, STUDENT will select the correct word  to match the given verbal description  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Prepositions

Given 3 to 5 objects or pictures and a verbal preposition, STUDENT will point to the correct object or picture  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given object(s) and a verbal or written prepositions directive, STUDENT will follow the directions and  act out the preposition using the given object(s)  (e.g., “Put the doll under the table.”)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a verbal question, STUDENT will select the picture of the noun that tells WHO and WHAT  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a story read aloud, STUDENT will select the picture of the noun that tells WHO and WHAT  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a verbal question, STUDENT will select the picture of the  verb  that tells the action  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a story read aloud, STUDENT will select the picture of the  verb  that tells the action  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a verbal question, STUDENT will select the picture  that tells WHERE  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a story read aloud, STUDENT will select the picture  that tells WHERE  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a verbal question, STUDENT will select the picture that tells HOW  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a story read aloud, STUDENT will select the picture that tells HOW  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a two word phrase that calls attention to an object or picture (e.g., “that car”, “her toy”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase describes the object or picture accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given an object or picture and a phrase that shows the  disappearance  (e.g., “crackers all gone”, “no cookie”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase describes the object or picture accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given an object or picture and a phrase that shows the  recurrence  (e.g., “more crackers”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase describes the object or picture accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given an object or picture and a phrase that contains an  adjective and a noun  (e.g., “red shoe”, “big ball”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase describes the object or picture accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given an object or picture and a phrase that shows  possession  (e.g., “Dad’s cat”, “girl’s shoe”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase describes the object or picture accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given an object or picture and a phrase that uses  action object form  (e.g., “Tie shoe”, “read book “), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase describes the object or picture accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given an object or picture and a phrase that indicates the  location  (e.g., “pencil down”, “car outside”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase describes the object or picture accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given an object or picture and a phrase that uses  agent action form  (e.g., “boy jump”, “girl eat”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase describes the object or picture accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given an object or picture and a phrase that shows an  emotion  (e.g., “girl sad”, “man angry”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase describes the object or picture accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given an object or picture and a phrase to achieve a  desired end  (e.g., “shoe on”, “go home”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase describes the object or picture accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a phrase or sentence that includes  articles  (e.g., “a”, “an”, “the”, and “some”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase or sentence uses the articles  accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a phrase or sentence that includes  adjectives  (e.g., “this”, “that”, “these”, and “those”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase or sentence uses the adjectives  accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a phrase or sentence that includes plurals  (e.g., s, es) and irregular plural nouns , STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase or sentence uses the plurals  accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a phrase or sentence that includes  possessive nouns  (e.g., “the girl’s bike”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase or sentence uses the possessive  accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a phrase or sentence that includes  subject pronouns  (e.g., “I”, “he”, “she”, “you”, “we” “they”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase or sentence uses the pronoun  accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a phrase or sentence that includes  object pronouns  (e.g., “me”, “him”, “her”, “you”, “us”, “them”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase or sentence uses the pronoun  accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a phrase or sentence that includes  possessive pronouns  (e.g., “my/mine”, “his”, “her/hers”, “your/yours”, “our/ours”, “their/theirs”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase or sentence uses the pronoun  accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a phrase or sentence that includes  reflexive pronouns  (e.g., “myself”, “himself”, “herself”, “yourself”, “yourselves”, “ourselves”, “themselves”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase or sentence uses the pronoun  accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a phrase or sentence that includes present progressive verb tense  (e.g., “The man is running”, “The girls are waving”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase or sentence uses the verb tense  accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a phrase or sentence that includes  past progressive verb tense  (e.g., “The man was running”, “The girls were waving”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase or sentence uses the verb tense  accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a phrase or sentence that includes  present tense “s” and “es” marker  (e.g., “The boy jogs”, and “The bee buzzes”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase or sentence uses the tense  accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a phrase or sentence that includes  “have” and “has”  (e.g., “The boy has a dog”, and “The girls have ice skating”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase or sentence uses the tense  accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a phrase or sentence that includes  regular past tense  (e.g., “The dog jumped”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase or sentence uses the tense  accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a phrase or sentence that includes  irregular past tense  (e.g., “The boy ran”), STUDENT will answer “yes or no” if the phrase or sentence uses the tense  accurately   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Speech Therapy Goals for Auditory Discrimination

Given multi-step directions, STUDENT will follow 2-step, 3-step, and 4-step directions of  increasing length and complexity  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

Given 10 words, STUDENT will recognize the differences between same or different words  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

Given a sentence, STUDENT will remember and repeat  of  increasing length and complexity  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a word broken down into isolated sounds, STUDENT will combine the isolated sounds together to form words  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Speech Therapy Goals for Phonological Awareness

Given 10 words, STUDENT will identify the sounds in the words  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 10 words, STUDENT will identify the number of sounds in the words  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 10 words, STUDENT will identify the similarities sounds in the words  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 2 words with matching beginning sounds or ending sounds, STUDENT will identify and/or match the words with the same beginning sounds or ending sounds  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a sentence with two rhyming words, STUDENT will identify the two rhyming words  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a rhyming word, STUDENT will produce two or more words that rhyme with the given word  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a word, STUDENT will substitute initial and/or final sounds  to  create new words (i.g., cat/fat; man, mad) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Speech Therapy Goals for Autism

• Play Skills
• Joint Attention
• Following Instructions
• Getting the Teacher’s Attention
• Friend Making
• General Conversation
• Perspective
• Problem Solving
• Dealing with Feelings
• Alternatives to Aggression
• Predictions/Inferences

-Play Skills

Given a toy(s), STUDENT will play with the toy(s) using their appropriate function  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a toy(s), STUDENT will demonstrate parallel play with peers for X minutes  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a toy(s), STUDENT will demonstrate symbolic play  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a toy(s), STUDENT will demonstrate pretend play  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a toy(s), STUDENT will take X turns during a play activity with peer or teacher  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an opportunity to offer someone help, STUDENT will ask what the other person needs, listen, provide the help requested  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given offered help from a peer or adult, STUDENT will accept the help and thank the person, or politely decline the help  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an opportunity to volunteer, STUDENT will look at the person, use a clear voice, ask to volunteer for a specific task or activity  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a task or activity to take turns, STUDENT will wait for HIS/HER turn, sit or stand quietly, keep HIS/HER legs and arms still, avoid whining or begging, and engage in activity or task when it is HIS/HER turn  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an opportunity to borrow something, STUDENT will make a polite request to borrow an item or material, accept “no” as an answer, and if the other person agrees promptly return the materials in the same condition  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a game activity, STUDENT will display good sportsmanship and play by the rules, accepting winning without bragging, and accepting losing without complaining  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a toy or object and asked to share, STUDENT will share the toy or object with a peer or adult  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Joint Attention

Given an activity with a partner, STUDENT will demonstrate joint attention for X minutes  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a communication partner, STUDENT will point to gain the communication partner’s attention  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a communication partner, STUDENT will use eye gaze to direct the communication partner’s attention  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a communication partner, STUDENT will track the eye gaze of others and predict what they are thinking and will modify their behavior based on what others are looking at  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Following Instructions

Given a direction, STUDENT will follow the 1-step direction  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 2-step directions, STUDENT will follow the 2-step directions  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 3-step directions, STUDENT will follow the 3-step directions  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given verbal directions, STUDENT will begin task with only 1 prompt within 1 minute of receiving the instructions  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given written directions, STUDENT will read the instructions, follow each instruction in order, and ask for help if needed  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given verbal or written directions to change to another activity, STUDENT will change to the new activity within 1 minute of receiving the instructions  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Getting the Teacher’s Attention

Given the need to get the teacher’s attention, STUDENT will  look at the teacher, raise HIS/HER hand, wait to be acknowledged, and ask their question  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a need to ask a question, STUDENT will get the person’s attention appropriately, look at the person, use a pleasant tone of voice, use words such as “please”, “would”, “may I”, and listen to the person’s answer  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a need to ask for help, STUDENT will look at the person, ask if he or she has time to help, clearly describe what kind of help HE/SHE needs  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a social setting, STUDENT will identify expected and unexpected behaviors in themselves and others  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a social setting, STUDENT will demonstrate expected behaviors  that are expected in that setting  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given expected and unexpected behaviors, STUDENT will identify how the expected and unexpected behaviors affect the thoughts and feelings of others  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given feedback regarding HIS/HER behavior, STUDENT will modify their behavior based on the feedback  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an example of their own behavior, STUDENT will identify how their own behavior will affect the thoughts and feelings of others  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given others’ behaviors, STUDENT will identify HIS/HER thoughts about others’ behaviors  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given actions from others, STUDENT will modify their own behavior based on the actions of others  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given social interactions, STUDENT will maintain appropriate personal space and maintain safe hands and body  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given classroom or small group discussion, STUDENT will demonstrate active listening skills (e.g., body facing the speaker, keep mouth and body still, nodding head to show listening, asking questions and/or making comments) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given different social settings, STUDENT will monitor HIS/HER volume and adjust it based on setting and/or situation  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given classroom or small group discussion, STUDENT will make on-topic and appropriate comments  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a specific behavior, STUDENT will identify how it makes others feel , the consequences, and how that then makes HIM/HER feel about HIMSELF/HERSELF  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a social situation, STUDENT will identify how others are feeling and identify at least one visual cue that lead them to that conclusion  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a task, STUDENT will listen carefully, gather materials, and begin working quietly  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a task, STUDENT will read the directions and attempt the assignment before asking the teacher for help  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Group Work

Given a group activity, STUDENT will cooperate with others, use a kind voice, and follow the set group guidelines  for the activity with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

Given a group activity, STUDENT will use appropriate volume level  for the activity and setting with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

Given a group activity, STUDENT will discuss what goal needs to be achieved with the group, decided HIS/HER role is going to be, accept help or feedback from peers, follow rules, share materials, and give praise to others,  for the activity with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

Given a new class period, STUDENT will come prepared for class by bringing all necessary materials (i.e., books, papers, homework, and writing tools) , being on time, and handing in assignments as requested by the teacher  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a new class period, STUDENT will determine what materials HE/SHE needs for class, gather materials, and only take those materials HE/SHE needs for class  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.     Given an assignment, STUDENT will write down the assignment in HIS/HER planner or electronic device  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a make-up or missed assignment, STUDENT will ask the teacher for the make-up or missed assignment  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Friend Making

Given an unfamiliar person to meet, STUDENT will introduce HIMSELF/HERSELF by looking at the person, use an appropriate greeting (i.e., Hi, my name is…”) and telling the person it was nice meeting HIM/HER when leaving  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

Given a familiar or unfamiliar person to greet, STUDENT will look at the person, use a kind voice, and say “hi” or “hello” following all 3 steps with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

Given an opportunity to compliment someone, STUDENT will look at the person, use a kind voice, give HIM/HER a compliment, and give the person time to respond  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

Given a compliment, STUDENT will look at the person, use a kind voice to thank the person (i.e., “Thank you, it’s my favorite shirt.”) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-General Conversation

Given a greeting from a peer or adult, STUDENT will acknowledge the greeting by  looking at the person and  returning the greeting  (e.g., “hello”, “hi”, “how are you?”, etc.)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a small group or classroom discussion, STUDENT will initiate the conversation (e.g., ask a question, make a comment, give a compliment, etc.)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a need or desire, STUDENT will  spontaneously communicate HIS/HER needs or desire (e.g., “I need…”, “I want…”)   with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a small group discussion, STUDENT will take turns during the conversation with a peer or an adult with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a small group discussion, STUDENT will identify expected and unexpected behaviors for a conversation (e.g., topic maintenance, topic changes, asking questions, on-topic comments, unrelated comments, appropriate interruptions, long talking turns, not responding, initiating conversations, etc.) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a conversational partner, STUDENT will describe the conversational partner’s emotional responses of HIM/HER when HE/SHE uses expected and unexpected behaviors during a conversation  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a small group discussion, STUDENT will demonstrate expected behaviors during preferred and un-preferred conversational topics  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a conversational partner, STUDENT will identify how that person is feeling based on observing their body language  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a small group discussion, STUDENT will use conversation maintenance strategies  (i.e., making comments, take turns, ask questions, etc.) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a conversational partner, STUDENT will maintain a topic for at least 3 conversational turns  (e.g., ask partner-focused questions, make comments, etc) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a conversation, STUDENT will look at the speaker, ask questions when appropriate, and not interrupt others  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a conversation, STUDENT will use the appropriate volume based on the setting  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a conversation, STUDENT will appropriately join the conversation by looking at the people, waiting for a moment when no one else is talking, make a comment or ask a question that relates to the topic  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a conversational partner who is busy talking with someone else, STUDENT will wait until the other person is finished speaking, look at the person, get their attention  (“Excuse me…”, “Do you have a minute…”) and wait for the person to acknowledge HIM/HER before continuing  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

Given a need to interrupt, STUDENT will look at the person, wait for the person to acknowledge them, begin with “Excuse me for interrupting, but…” make a specific request or give information  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a small group or classroom discussion, STUDENT will demonstrate active listening skills   (track the speaker with their eyes, keep mouth and body still and quiet, nodding head to show listening, ask questions and/or make comments, etc.) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a communication partner and a communication breakdown, STUDENT will use  communication breakdown strategies,  such as restating what HE/SHE said, adjusting volume, using a slow rate, use precise articulation, move hands/items away from mouth  to improve HIS/HER intelligibility level so that the listener can understand HIS/HER request or question with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Perspective

Given a social interaction, STUDENT will accurately identify another’s perspective  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given different conversational partners (e.g., peer, teacher, authority figure, etc.), STUDENT will adjust HIS/HER language style and topics of conversation based on the conversation partner  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or social interaction, STUDENT will identify another person’s emotion and why HE/SHE is feeling that way  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Problem Solving

Given a problem and problem solving graphic organizer , STUDENT will identify 3 solutions, the 3 consequences of those solutions, then determine the best solution, and explain why that is the best solution  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a problem, STUDENT will appropriately  identify the size of the problem  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given problems at differing sizes, STUDENT will identify appropriate reaction size to the problem  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Dealing with Feelings

Given a time when the student is angry, STUDENT will use a calming strategy (e.g., breathe slowly, take a break, count to 10, listen to music, etc.) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given warning and a change in routine, STUDENT will identify exactly what is changing, ask questions, remain calm, and explain HIS/HER feelings of concern  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given warning and a change in routine, STUDENT will accept the change without becoming upset  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a social interaction, STUDENT will identify HIS/HER emotion and why HE/SHE is feeling that way  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Alternatives to Aggression

Given a real-life or role-play scenario, STUDENT will demonstrate how to accept teacher help to make an appropriate decision during a conflict situation  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a real-life or role-play conflict scenario, STUDENT will demonstrate appropriate peer mediation skills to resolve the conflict  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a real-life or role-play conflict scenario, STUDENT will remain calm and relaxed, listen to the other person, determine what they can agree on  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given criticism or feedback, STUDENT will look at the person, say “okay”, and not argue  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a problem, STUDENT will define exactly what the problem is, brainstorm possible options, consider disadvantages and advantages of options, and choose the best option  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a defeat or loss in a game, STUDENT will look at the person who won , remain calm, and congratulate the other person  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given an upsetting situation, STUDENT will express HIS/HER anger with non-aggressive words to describe how HE/SHE feels  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Predictions/Inferencing

Given a picture, STUDENT will make a prediction or inference about the picture with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a short story, STUDENT will make a prediction or inference about the story with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a social scenario, STUDENT will make a prediction or inference about the scenario and identify at least one visual cue that contributed to HIS/HER inference  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Augmentative Alternative Communication

Speech therapy goals for aac.

• Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS)
• Sign Language

-Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS)

Given a want or need, STUDENT will request a want or a need by pulling off a picture symbol and placing it into the teacher’s hand  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

Given a want or need, STUDENT will choose the “I want” or “I need” symbol plus the desired item , then place them both onto the sentence strip , then and hand the sentence strip to the teacher  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.  

Given a simple question, such as “What do you want?”, STUDENT will independently choose a picture symbol to answer a simple question  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.    

Given augmentative symbols or device, STUDENT will carry device to various school and community locations  (lunchroom, classroom, recess etc.) with minimal prompting with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given augmentative symbols or device, STUDENT will independently navigate to the “home” page  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a question or community helper or form, STUDENT will identify HIS/HER contact information  selecting (i.e. name, address, phone number, etc.) using augmentative symbols or device  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a community sign, STUDENT will identify the community sign  (i.e. restroom, stop sign, crosswalk, exit, etc.) using augmentative symbols or device  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a question, STUDENT will express HIS/HER preference selecting “yes or no” using augmentative symbols or device  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a group of pictures, STUDENT will identify the category of the pictures using augmentative symbols or device  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object, STUDENT will identify the color  of the picture or object using augmentative symbols or device  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object, STUDENT will identify the shape  of the picture or object using augmentative symbols or device  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object, STUDENT will identify the attributes  (hot/cold, big/little, soft/hard) of the picture or object using augmentative symbols or device  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a group of objects, STUDENT will count the objects  and select the appropriate number of objects (1-10)  using augmentative symbols or device  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a picture or object, STUDENT will select matching word  using augmentative symbols or device  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 5 pictures of facial emotions, STUDENT will identify the emotion  using  augmentative symbols or device  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities. 

Given a spoken question, STUDENT will select the desired activity  using augmentative symbols or device  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a communication partner, STUDENT will initiate a conversation with a peer or teacher (i.e. hello, how are you ?, etc.) using augmentative symbols or device  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a communication partner, STUDENT will maintain a conversation  and engage in up to 3 conversational exchanges with a peer or teacher using augmentative symbols or device  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given augmentative symbols or device, STUDENT will select HIS/HER meal choices  (in the school lunchroom, restaurant, etc.) with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a communication partner, STUDENT will spontaneously make a request or greet a peer or teacher using augmentative symbols or device  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a time of frustration, STUDENT will independently indicate a break or refuse an undesired item or activity  (i.e. “no”, “I don’t want”, “I don’t like”, etc.)   using augmentative symbols or device  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a communication partner, STUDENT will inform others of past events  using augmentative symbols or device  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a communication partner and a communication breakdown, STUDENT will repair the communication breakdown  using augmentative symbols or device  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

-Sign Language

Given a need and a verbal prompt, STUDENT will sign a basic “need” sign , such as ( help, more, done, want, need etc.) to make a request  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a need, STUDENT will sign a basic “need” sign , such as ( help, more, done, want, need etc.) to make a request  spontaneously across multiple school environments and the community  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a conversational partner, STUDENT will  introduce HIMSELF/HERSELF by fingerspelling HIS/HER name or using HIS/HER name sign  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a signed picture or object, STUDENT will receptively identify the picture or object that was signed with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 5 pictures or objects, STUDENT will expressively label  the pictures or objects using sign with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given 5 pictures of facial emotions, STUDENT will identify the emotion  using sign with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Speech Therapy Goals for Figurative Language

Given a reading task, STUDENT will identify and interpret the meaning of  idioms , metaphors, similes, or proverbs  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a writing task, STUDENT will create similes and/or metaphors in a sentence or paragraph  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a reading task, STUDENT will make predictions and inferences based on  textual evidence  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a reading task, STUDENT will make inferences based on a character in literature   about why they say, feel, and do the things that they do  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Speech Therapy Goals Written Language

Given a writing task, STUDENT will produce  grammatically correct sentences  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a writing task, STUDENT will vary HIS/HER use of sentence starters to enhance HIS/HER writing with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a short story or video, STUDENT will answer wh -questions (who, what, when, where, why, & how) using complete sentences  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Given a graphic organizer, STUDENT will produce a five paragraph essay including an  introduction, topic sentences, transitions, and conclusion  with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Speech Therapy Goals Intelligibility

Given a communication partner and a communication breakdown, STUDENT will use  clear slow speech  and pausing to gather HIS/HER thoughts to improve HIS/HER intelligibility level so that the listener can understand HIS/HER request or question with 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 opportunities.

Send me the FREE IEP Goal Bank!

Speech therapy goals conclusion.

I hope you find these speech therapy goals helpful or they gave you an idea for how to write speech therapy goals.

Let me know if there are other speech therapy goals and objectives that would be helpful or if you have examples of speech therapy goals.

Monday 12th of December 2022

This is one of most GO-TO Goal banks. Thank you so much!

Melissa Berg

Tuesday 27th of December 2022

Hi Jannette, I'm SO happy to hear that this is your GO_TO goal bank. Wishing you all my best! Melissa

Tuesday 4th of October 2022

Hi! I use this goal bank frequently but am always wondering why it was decided to label the goals for D/deaf and Hard of Hearing people as "Hearing Impaired/Impairment"? From my understanding and work with the DHH population, most prefer the terms, deaf, Deaf, or Hard of Hearing rather than Hearing Impaired. Just wanted to check in about it! Thanks!

Wednesday 5th of October 2022

Hi Melissa, Thanks so much for the feedback! I have made the updated suggestion. All my best, Melissa

Janet Pevsner

Monday 19th of September 2022

Your materials are sooo great AND you are soooo generous with your materials! Thank you so much for this Melissa.

Tuesday 20th of September 2022

Hi Janet, Thank you for your kind and thoughtful words! It means so much to me. I'm happy to know you like my materials! Wishing you all the best, Melissa

Monday 29th of August 2022

I love your material, it's so helpful! Thank you so much!

Lorena Bazarte

Thursday 25th of August 2022

Can you include goals for consultation for students in language articulation and fluency--when students have mastered the objectives but want to keep them in consult to monitor that they maintain their skills.

Saturday 27th of August 2022

Hi Lorena, I love this idea! I currently don't have anything in the works, but can add this to my future ideas list! All my best, Melissa

How to Write Expressive Language Goals [with goal bank]

Expressive language goals focus on an individual’s use of language. This post will explain how to write goals to address expressive language in intervention using the Communication Community Goal Writing Formula!

Our comprehensive goal banks for school-aged language, AAC, Early Intervention & preschool, and fluency are available on our site or Teachers Pay Teachers store !

Save time creating goals with over THOUSANDS of possible goal combinations. Select your own combination of DO + CONDITION + CRITERION (and consistency) statements to develop personalized and measurable goals for your caseload.

What is expressive language?

Expressive language is the use of language, whereas receptive language is the understanding of language. there are five domains of language , including phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics and pragmatics. when developing expressive language goals, examining each of these domains is important so that the specific areas of need are targeted. for example, if an individual has adequate syntactical skills when using language, but does not have adequate semantic skills, goals should focus on semantics., who needs expressive language goals.

Expressive language goals are developed once it has been determined that an individual qualifies for speech-language intervention. This is done through a formal evaluation by a speech-language pathologist (SLP), and includes formal and informal assessments. Expressive language areas may include the use of developmentally-appropriate vocabulary, grammar, morphology, and more. Some individuals who have expressive language goals are children with language delays and individuals who have deficits in language due to a brain injury or a stroke.

What if someone uses sign language or an AAC system?

Individuals may use multiple types of communication modalities when expressing language, including speaking, sign language, or AAC. Many individuals use multiple communication modalities, such as speaking and AAC. When developing expressive language goals, consider what types of communication modalities individuals will be using and include that in the goal as well.

Writing Expressive Language Goals

Below you will find our Communication Community Goal Writing Formula that we use for writing all communication goals (e.g., receptive, expressive, pragmatic, etc.).

As seen above, speech goals should be written with 3* components in mind: the DO statement, the CONDITION statement, and the CRITERION statement.

*Also commonly included is consistency (we incorporate this!). Aka does the individual have to meet a specific criterion more than once? A common example of this may include across 3 consecutive sessions. This is usually something understood by the therapy organization/service provider and is sometimes/sometimes not included in the written goal itself. This is to ensure that the skill has been generalized and provides more reliable data that the skill has been properly mastered.

DO statement

What the client is actually going to DO and the specific skill they will be working towards. Example: produce a grammatically correct simple sentence

CONDITION statement

The specific setting and/or context your client will work on this skill. Example: during structured language activities

CRITERION statement

How the client’s performance will be measured. Example : in 9 out of 10 trials

DO + CONDITION + CRITERION

Example: [Client] will produce a grammatically correct simple sentence, during structured language activities, in 9 out of 10 trials.

There you have it! That is an example using our Goal Writing Formula containing the DO + CONDITION + CRITERION (don’t forget to think about consistency!) for an expressive language skill area.

Expressive Language Goal Bank

This goal bank includes a range of goals across phonology, morphology, syntax, and semantics. We have an entire post on pragmatic language goals as well. You may take parts of each goal (e.g. the DO from one and the CONDITION from another) in order to create the best goals for your individual.

- Example 1* : [Client] will verbally use accurate phonemes (e.g. /h/ in “hat”) in words and phrases, during structured language activities, in 4/ 5 opportunities.

* note this is not due to the client’s inability to produce specific phonemes, which would be considered an articulation or phonological disorder. This refers to understanding that the /h/ sound is significant to the meaning of the word “hat.”

- Example 2 : [Client] will accurately fingerspell functional words (e.g. their name), when completing classroom tasks, with 80% accuracy across 2 consecutive sessions.

- Example 1 : [Client] will use the bound morpheme -s to express plurality, verbally and in writing, when completing grade-level assignments, in 8/10 opportunities.

- Example 2 : [Client] will accurately use regular past tense using multimodal communication (signs, AAC, words), in small group sessions, with 90% accuracy, in 2 out of 3 sessions.

Syntax (grammar)

- Example 1 : [Client] will produce simple sentences containing a noun + verb (e.g. The boy eats) using multimodal communication, during structured and unstructured language activities, in 9/10 opportunities, across 3 consecutive sessions.

- Example 2 : [Client] will verbally answer simple wh- questions (who, what, where, when, why, how) using grammatically correct simple and compound sentences, during structured tasks, in 8/10 opportunities.

- Example 3 : [Client] will produce simple sentences using irregular past verb tenses (went, was, knew, have, etc) using multimodal communication, during group activities, in 9/ 10 opportunities.

- Example 4 : [Client] will write compound sentences using coordinating conjunctions (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so), during structured language tasks, with 75% accuracy in three out of four sessions.

- Example 5 : [Client] will write complex sentences using one independent clause and at least one dependent clause, as a response to a question or prompt, with 80% accuracy.

- Example 6 : [Client] will use multimodal communication to produce simple sentences with a present verb tense, during small group sessions, in 4/ 5 opportunities.

- Example 7 : [Client] will use multimodal communication to produce compound and complex sentences, during classroom and social settings, in 9/ 10 trials.

Semantics (vocabulary)

- Example 1 : [Client] will use multimodal communication to produce figurative language (similes, metaphors, hyperboles, personifications, etc), during structured language activities, in 7/ 10 opportunities.

- Example 2 : [Client] will accurately use taught vocabulary words, during structured language activities, with 90% accuracy.

- Example 3 : [Client] will provide a synonym or antonym for a presented word, during structured language tasks, in 8/ 10 opportunities.

Combination

Many expressive language domains overlap, and many individuals with expressive language difficulties require intervention in more than one domain. Additionally, higher-level metacognitive skills related to expressive language may require intervention for achievement. Below are some goals to reflect skills in multiple domains and metacognitive skills.

- Example 1 : [Client] will produce 1-2 sentences verbal narratives about stories, passages, or videos using correct morphology, grammar, and vocabulary, during small group sessions, with 80% accuracy.  

- Example 2 : [Client] will use multimodal communication to compare and contrast elements of stories, passages, or videos using simple and compound sentences with relevant vocabulary, during structured language activities, with 90% accuracy across 2 consecutive sessions.

- Example 3 : [Client] will use metacognitive strategies (e.g. planning tasks, using graphic organizers) to produce age-appropriate written work, in academic assignments, in 4 / 5 opportunities.

- Example 4 : [Client] will produce 1-2 paragraph written narratives about stories, passages, or videos using correct morphology, grammar, and vocabulary, in academic assignments or structured language tasks, with 80% accuracy.  

Looking for more? More GOALS posts:

• How to Write Pragmatic Language Goals
• How to Write Receptive Language Goals
• How to Write AAC Goals
• How to Write Play Skills Goals
• How to Write Articulation Goals
• How to write Fluency Goals (Stuttering)
• How to Write Voice Disorders Goals
• How to Write Cluttering Goals
• How to Write Phonological Awareness Goals

Want to know how we prep ourselves for goal-writing (and more)?

These are some of our favorite resources for working:

• Clipboard with storage - we use ours ALL THE TIME!
• Some really nice pens - the feel of a pen that writes so well...priceless.
• Blue light glasses - for when excessive screen time is just...necessary

Happy writing!

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Citations/further resources

https://www.asha.org/practice-portal/clinical-topics/written-language-disorders/intervention-target-areas/

https://www.asha.org/practice-portal/clinical-topics/spoken-language-disorders/

https://www.asha.org/practice-portal/clinical-topics/written-language-disorders/

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