IEP Goal Bank : Transition Skills

Are you tired of ‘Dollar Over’ being your go-to functional math and independent living goal?  Because let’s be honest, how many people carry a $20 bill, $10 bill, $5 bill, and four $1 bills with them at all times?  

Are you also over ‘Will develop a resume’ as your go-to employment goal?  

Or, is ‘will research local college options’ overused as your go-to education goal?

Please, don’t open up a new Chrome tab, search ‘IEP Goal Bank’ and click on a website to find a short list of outdated functional skills.  

If you want more variety, more meaningful goals, ideas for lessons and options for goals after your students have Mastered the most basic of goals (i.e. Dollar Over, developing a resume, and researching local college options), then you NEED the Transition Skills IEP Goal Bank.

I’ve been asked in the past if I have a goal bank that I love to use and honestly, I didn’t.  I relied on my teaching experience and conversations with families about their priorities to develop meaningful goals.  I can honestly share that the more experience I had (and admittedly, the more I worked with families and students as they moved into transition programming), the better I became at identifying and writing functional IEP goals.  

And, if you know me, then you know that if I can’t find what I like, I create it! 

When I was dreaming up this resource I knew it needed to be versatile.  This resource needed to serve many important purposes, because as high school and transition educators (and middle school educators too), we need to see the big picture so we can appropriately break down topics into lessons and then into skills.  

Let me highlight why YOU will LOVE this resource:

1.You can use it to brainstorm MODERN DAY IEP goal ideas

Somewhere along the line I believe particular skills were labeled as ‘the most important’ or ‘the building blocks to other skills.’  For example- Dollar Over.  Considering the Transition Skills IEP Goal Bank has over 900 skills, there are FAR more skills that could be addressed, specifically as it relates to money.  Also, not all skills are contingent on mastering other goals.  

For example, a student does not need to master Dollar Over in order to be ready to learn how to use a debit card.  The skills are both functional money skills, however Dollar Over is not a prerequisite to using a debit card.  Using the Money Skills (which you can grab HERE for FREE) is a great way to see ALL the different money skills that students can learn.

2.You can use it to develop a scope and sequence

Whether you are developing a new transition program, starting as a new teacher, or overhauling an old and outdated curriculum, the Transition Skills IEP Goal Bank covers Independent Living, Education, Training, and Employment- all important topics when building the foundation of a program or class.  

Here are ALL the topics included in the goal bank:

• Independent Living Skills

• Personal Hygiene

• Communication

• Self Advocacy

• Personal Information & Belongings

• Food, Cooking, & Eating

• Money

• Home Maintenance

• Schedule & Recreation Leisure

• Safety, Health, & Medical Needs

• Transportation

• Accessing the Community

• Shopping

• Mobility & Assistive Technology

• Social Relationships

• Digital Skills

• Sensory Needs

• Education

• Post Secondary Options

• Academic Demand Awareness

• Building Support Systems

• Training

• Training Awareness

• Engaging in Training

• Pre-Vocational Skills

• Employment

• Expanding Awareness

• Seeking Employment

• Initial Employment

• Maintaining Employment

3.You can use it when collaborating with a large IEP team

Having worked with large IEP teams in the past, I know the value of having a system to record ideas, thoughts, potential future goals, and what has already been mastered.  Each section has a few columns to document all that the team brainstorms when developing appropriate IEP goals. 

Also, print this and include it in your student’s unofficial folder for future teams to reference.  

4.You can easily identify the ‘next skill to address’

The skills in each section are broken down into 1 of 3 levels: foundational skill, growing in the skill, and independence.  This easily helps you identify what skills to address first and next with your student and/or class.  This really solves the problem of, ‘What goal do I write next for this student?’  Just reference the list, find the next level of skills, and choose the most appropriate! 

Want to check out part of the IEP Transition Skills Goal Bank for free?  Grab the Money skills section HERE! 

Stop feeling mentally drained when it comes to crafting quality IEP goals or developing your scope and sequence.  Your teacher toolbox is in need of this awesome resource!

TL;DR

Transition Skills IEP Goal Bank Perks

• 900+ transition skills

• Covers Independent Living, Education, Training, and Employment

• Includes skills for the modern-day student

• Use to develop IEP goals, a scope and sequence for a high school or transition program/class, or to refresh the skills you address in your classroom

• Skills are organized by section and in a progressive order

• Grab the FREE Money Section to preview it for yourself