Connect sentences with formal transitions
When to use this goal
For middle school students who connect ideas only with and, so, or but, or who use however and therefore where the meaning does not fit. Present levels should show compound and complex sentences; the target is choosing and punctuating formal transitions.
- Baseline
- Give two probes of ten pairs. Score a pair correct only when the transition matches the relationship and the punctuation is correct (a period or semicolon before, a comma after). Record meaning errors and punctuation errors separately.
- Tips
- Teach transitions by their job, not as a long list. Pull pairs from the student's own drafts once the probe is easy. Check own writing monthly for transfer.
- Limits
- Correct transitions on pairs do not guarantee use in essays. Some pairs fit more than one transition; accept any that fits. Punctuation rules with transitions confuse many students; the goal scores both.
Original IEP Atlas template based on general measurement principles; not copied from any goal bank. ID wr-sen-045.
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Goal
By the annual IEP review date, given ten pairs of related sentences and a transition bank sorted by job (adding, contrast, result, example, time), the student will join or link each pair with a transition that fits the relationship (such as however, as a result, for example, in addition) and punctuate it correctly independently with at least 80% accuracy on sentence pairs, in 3 of 4 consecutive weekly probes, as measured by work-sample analysis collected weekly.
Baseline: 30% accuracy.
- Condition
- Observable behavior
- Criterion
- Measurement method
Measurability check11 of 11 met
Met: Observable behavior. Stated as an action.
Met: Condition. Stated.
Met: Unit fits the behavior. Percent accuracy fits this behavior.
Met: Explicit criterion. Number and unit stated.
Met: Mastery rule and schedule. Both stated.
Met: Method produces the metric. Work-sample analysis gives percent accuracy data.
Met: Review timeframe. Stated.
Met: Baseline and target compatible. Same unit, change in the right direction.
Met: Aligned with area of need. Still about Sentence Construction.
Met: Level of support. Defined.
Met: Blanks filled in. Nothing left to fill in.
Checks structure and wording only. Whether the goal fits the student is the team's call.
Short-term objectives (optional)
When are objectives required?Required for students on alternate assessments (34 CFR §300.320(a)(2)(ii)); some states require them for everyone.
Paste into your IEP system
Most district systems have a separate box for each part of a goal. Copy them one at a time, or all at once as labeled text.
- Area of need
- Writing - Sentence Construction
- Baseline
- 30% accuracy.
- Annual goal466 characters
- By the annual IEP review date, given ten pairs of related sentences and a transition bank sorted by job (adding, contrast, result, example, time), the student will join or link each pair with a transition that fits the relationship (such as however, as a result, for example, in addition) and punctuate it correctly independently with at least 80% accuracy on sentence pairs, in 3 of 4 consecutive weekly probes, as measured by work-sample analysis collected weekly.
- Timeframe
- By the annual IEP review date
- Condition
- Given ten pairs of related sentences and a transition bank sorted by job (adding, contrast, result, example, time)
- Behavior
- The student will join or link each pair with a transition that fits the relationship (such as however, as a result, for example, in addition) and punctuate it correctly independently
- Criteria
- With at least 80% accuracy on sentence pairs, in 3 of 4 consecutive weekly probes
- Evaluation method
- Work-sample analysis
- Schedule
- Weekly
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Matching data sheet
Accuracy tracker. Records number correct and number attempted.
Accuracy tracker
Percent accuracy- Student label:
- Target:
- with at least 80% accuracy on sentence pairs
- Mastery rule:
- in 3 of 4 consecutive weekly probes
- Collection schedule:
- weekly
- Method:
- Work-sample analysis
- Data collector:
Goal: By the annual IEP review date, given ten pairs of related sentences and a transition bank sorted by job (adding, contrast, result, example, time), the student will join or link each pair with a transition that fits the relationship (such as however, as a result, for example, in addition) and punctuate it correctly independently with at least 80% accuracy on sentence pairs, in 3 of 4 consecutive weekly probes, as measured by work-sample analysis collected weekly.
| Date | Task / materials | # correct | # attempted | % accuracycorrect ÷ attempted × 100 | Support levele.g., independent, 1 verbal prompt | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Preview shows 4 of 12 rows.
- Score only items the student attempted unless the goal defines a fixed set of items. Use the same denominator every session.
- Percent = numerator ÷ denominator × 100. Round to one decimal place.
- Record the support actually provided, even if the goal is independent performance.
The CSV opens in Excel or Google Sheets, with formulas. Sheets print blank; no student data is stored.