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Paraphrase sections at planned stopping points

Unreviewed draft3-5, 6-8Opportunities
Student reference

Use a generic label rather than a student's name. Review goals within your school's approved IEP system.

Current baseline

Sample numbers are illustrative. Set the baseline and target from the student's own assessment data and team judgment.

Condition

Setting, materials, or situation, such as a passage level or a work period.

Observable behavior

Something an adult can see, count, or time. Avoid “understand,” “improve,” or “know.”

Level of support

Say exactly what support counts, such as “with one verbal prompt.” Leave “independently” if none.

Criterion

Number of opportunities in which the behavior is demonstrated, out of a fixed number.

Measurement method

Each planned or naturally occurring opportunity is recorded as correct/independent, prompted, or not demonstrated.

Mastery rule
Timeframe and monitoring

You can type a date, such as “By May 15, 2027”.

Match the schedule to the skill. Fluency often uses weekly probes. Writing rubrics may be scored every few weeks.

Live goal preview

By the annual IEP review date, while reading an instructional-level informational text with 5 marked stopping points, the student will stop at each marked point and paraphrase the section's main idea and one detail in their own words independently in at least 4 of 5 opportunities, across 3 consecutive sessions, as measured by opportunity-by-opportunity data collected weekly.

Baseline: 1 of 5 opportunities.

  • Condition
  • Observable behavior
  • Criterion
  • Measurement method
Add objectivesMatching data sheet

Measurability check10 of 10 met

All structural checks are met.

  • Met: Observable behavior. The behavior is stated as an action.

  • Met: Condition. The goal states when or under what conditions the behavior occurs.

  • Met: Unit fits the behavior. Opportunities is a reasonable way to quantify this behavior.

  • Met: Explicit criterion. The success criterion is stated with a number and unit.

  • Met: Mastery rule and schedule. Mastery rule and collection schedule are stated.

  • Met: Method produces the metric. Opportunity (trial) recording can produce opportunities data.

  • Met: Review timeframe. The goal includes a timeframe.

  • Met: Baseline and target compatible. Baseline and target use the same unit and show change in the intended direction.

  • Met: Aligned with area of need. The wording still relates to Reading Comprehension.

  • Met: Level of support. The level of support is defined.

What this checks: the goal's structure and wording, using fixed rules: observable behavior, condition, criterion, method, mastery rule, timeframe, baseline/target consistency, and support. It can't judge whether the goal is appropriate, ambitious enough, or legally sufficient for a particular student. That requires assessment data and the IEP team.

About this template
Level guidance
For students whose present levels show they read to the end of a text without checking whether it made sense. Use observation and comprehension data to decide fit; this strategy goal suits any grade where that pattern appears.
Baseline considerations
Before teaching the strategy, ask the student to tell what each section was about at 5 stopping points over a few sessions. Define what counts as an accurate paraphrase (main idea plus one correct detail, mostly in the student's own words).
Usage notes
Teach paraphrasing explicitly with modeling and guided practice before measuring. Once steady, reduce the number of marked stops and ask the student to choose stopping points.
Known limitations
Paraphrasing depends on oral language and vocabulary. Stopping points placed by adults make the task easier than real reading. Does not directly measure answers to questions.
Source
Original IEP Atlas draft (AI-assisted) based on general measurement principles; not copied from any goal bank. Template ID rd-comp-005.

Short-term objectives (optional)

When are objectives required?

Federal IDEA regulations require benchmarks or short-term objectives only for students who take alternate assessments aligned to alternate academic achievement standards (34 CFR §300.320(a)(2)(ii)). Your state or district may require them more broadly.

Build objectives by

Matching data sheet

Opportunity tracker. Your goal counts opportunities, so the sheet has one box per opportunity in each session.

Opportunity tracker

Opportunities
Student label:
 
Target:
in at least 4 of 5 opportunities
Mastery rule:
across 3 consecutive sessions
Collection schedule:
weekly
Method:
Opportunity (trial) recording
Data collector:
 

Goal: By the annual IEP review date, while reading an instructional-level informational text with 5 marked stopping points, the student will stop at each marked point and paraphrase the section's main idea and one detail in their own words independently in at least 4 of 5 opportunities, across 3 consecutive sessions, as measured by opportunity-by-opportunity data collected weekly.

Key: + demonstrated independently · P demonstrated with a prompt (note type) · − not demonstrated · NA no opportunity occurred

Opportunity tracker
DateActivity / context12345# + (of 5)Notes

Preview shows 4 of 12 rows.

  • Record up to 5 opportunities per session, matching the goal's denominator.
  • Define in advance what counts as an opportunity so every data collector records the same thing.
  • Count only + marks toward the criterion unless the goal specifies prompted responses.

The CSV opens in Excel or Google Sheets with formulas for the calculated columns. Sheets are blank: IEP Atlas doesn't store student data.

Preview
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