IEP's

It's a wonderful Saturday night and I have been finishing up an IEP. I still really struggle with writing goals. Our district wants us to 70% or higher for mastery of a goal so I am very careful on what goals I pick. Sometimes getting a child to 70% on a task just won't happen. If there is a goal I want to work on with a student, but I don't think they will master it as 70% I write it down in the student's data collection binder and we work on it along with the main goals. Remember you don't have to include everything you will work on just the things that you feel are very important to help your student with his or her academics and being independent. I also write my goals with my data collection in mind. I want to make sure I can measure what I am asking the child to do.

I may be the only one, but I love writing an IEP. I find it to be therapeutic in that it gives me a chance to see what changes my student has made over the year and gives me a challenge to find just the right goals for us to work on in the year to come. Here are some tips/ideas I use/do when creating an IEP. *Note I work with severe and profound kiddos.

Does this ever feel like you?

• I write the PLEP to be a true picture of the student. Too many times I have gotten a transfer kiddo and the IEP did not tell me anything about the student. I don't want that to happen if one of my students transfers out.
• I mix both core content goals and functional goals. I try to match what that student should be doing in the classroom or will need to do for state testing. Sometimes I have to include with full support or verbal and visual prompts so that I know the student will have success. 
• I write goals that allow for my student to be as independent as they can be. I always have my overall goal for each of my students: instill skills that will allow them to do for themselves as much as they are able. 
• I write my goals with data collection in mind. I found myself struggling too many times to come up with a way to show progress on a goal if I don't think about it as I write the goal. 
• I always send a letter home asking the parents if they have any goals or skills they would like me to work on and include in the new IEP. I like having a draft written for the meeting, but I also want to make sure parents feel they have a say as well. 

What about you? Do you have any tips to share? Do you enjoy writing an IEP or do you dread it? Please share.

I didn't get to take more pictures. Okay I forgot to take more pictures! I actually spent Friday cleaning out a lot of things getting ready for my new items that I purchased with our Title 1 money. I was able to spend $1000 for educational materials for my kiddos. I just got the email tonight that the first round of items will be in my room when I walk in Tuesday morning! I'm so giddy with excitement. I turned my orders in back in early December and don't remember all that I put down. If I didn't have a doctor's appointment Monday I'd sneak in with the tutoring and get it all set up. (*Side note: Our school district has 4 day school weeks so Mondays are not a work day for us. We do offer tutoring on Mondays so I could try to go in and get it all up and ready if I wasn't already busy.) I do know that I got a mail center for my construction paper and I don't have a clue where I will put it. A challenge for me or my para to tackle on Tuesday. I'll take pictures and post them as I work on getting all the new stuff set up.

I didn't think this was going to be a long one, but I guess when you are sharing about something you love you just write and write. I am starting to implement my task trays with my students and see great success. Be looking for a blog on that soon.