Home › Free guides

How to write IEP annual goals with quarterly objectives

An annual goal says where the student should be at the end of the IEP year. Quarterly objectives are the four checkpoints that get them there. Here's how to write both from real data.

Updated 2026-10-17 · By the Skip the Gatekeepers team

Annual goals vs. quarterly objectives

• Annual goal: what the student can do by the end of the IEP year (about 12 months), stated so anyone can measure it.
• Quarterly objectives (also called short-term objectives or benchmarks): smaller, measurable steps toward that goal, one per quarter (Q1–Q4), usually lined up with your progress-reporting periods.

Under federal law (IDEA), every IEP needs measurable annual goals and a plan for reporting progress. Short-term objectives are only required for students who take alternate assessments, but many states and districts require them for everyone, and they make progress reports much easier to write. Always follow your district's rules.

Step 1: Gather baseline data

Write down where the student is now, with numbers and dates. Good sources: curriculum-based measures (CBM), DIBELS or Acadience, i-Ready, MAP, work samples scored with a rubric, and observation data. Aim for at least 3 data points so one bad day doesn't set the baseline.

Example baseline: "On 3 grade-4 oral reading fluency probes in September, Jordan read a median of 62 words correct per minute (wcpm) with 91% accuracy."

Step 2: Pick the skill and the measure

Choose one skill tied to the student's biggest need in the present levels, and one way to measure it that you'll actually use every week or two. If you can't picture the probe, the goal isn't measurable yet.

Step 3: Set the annual target

Use the baseline plus a realistic growth rate. A simple method:

1. Find the typical weekly growth for the measure (your assessment's norms or your district's guidance).
2. Multiply by the number of instructional weeks in the IEP year (often about 36).
3. Add it to the baseline. Make it ambitious but reachable, and compare it with the grade-level benchmark.

Example: 62 wcpm + (1.5 wcpm/week × 36 weeks) ≈ 116, so a target of 115 wcpm.

Step 4: Write the annual goal

Use four parts: timeframe + condition + behavior + criterion.

"By [IEP end date], when given an unfamiliar grade-4 passage, Jordan will read aloud at 115 wcpm with 95% accuracy on 3 of 4 consecutive weekly probes."

Check it: Could two different teachers measure it and agree? Does it say how well, how often and by when?

Step 5: Split it into Q1–Q4 objectives

Space the targets between baseline and the annual target. Each objective keeps the same condition and measure, with a smaller criterion and its own date, usually the last day of each quarter.

Objectives can also break a goal into sub-skills (for example decoding, then fluency, then expression) instead of just stepping up a number.

Step 6: Plan how you'll monitor it

Write who collects the data, how often (weekly or every other week is typical) and with what tool. Then actually look at it weekly. See our weekly progress monitoring routine.

Quick checklist

• Baseline has numbers and dates
• Goal has timeframe, condition, behavior, criterion
• Target is based on growth rate, not a guess
• Four objectives, each with its own date
• Same measure in the baseline, objectives and goal
• The IEP team reviewed and agreed

More examples: measurable IEP goal examples by area.