IEP meeting checklist for teachers and case managers

By the IEP Atlas editorial teamLast updated November 1, 2026

Short answer

Use this checklist for every annual review, initial IEP or reevaluation meeting. It lists what to do from about 4 weeks before the meeting to 2 weeks after, grouped before, during and after, with the reason for each item. Start it the day you set the meeting date, and keep a copy in the student's working file.

This checklist is for the case manager running the meeting and the teachers and providers who report at it. Each item has a one-line reason, so you know which ones you can shorten on a busy week and which ones you cannot skip.

The federal rules behind most items are in 34 CFR Part 300, mainly the sections on the IEP team, parent participation and when the IEP takes effect.^[1]^[2]^[3] Your state adds timelines and forms on top, so check your procedures manual for the details. The IEP meeting guide explains the meeting itself.

4 weeks before

Confirm the due dates. Enter the last IEP date and last evaluation date in the IEP due date calculator. Reason: the annual review must happen at least once a year, and a late meeting is a compliance finding.^[4]
Check whether this is also a reevaluation year. Reason: a triennial needs consent and testing time, which can take weeks.^[5]
Pick 2 or 3 possible dates and ask the parent first. Reason: the meeting must be at a mutually agreed time and place.^[2]
List the required members for this meeting. Reason: missing a required member, such as the general education teacher, can make the meeting invalid unless they are properly excused.^[1]
Ask each provider for current goal data by a set date. Reason: data collected the night before is thin and hard to explain.

2 weeks before

Send the written meeting notice. Include purpose, date, time, place, who will attend, and that the parent may bring others. Reason: these are the required contents of the notice.^[2]
Add transition language to the notice if the student is 16, or younger in your state. Reason: the notice must say postsecondary goals will be discussed and the student is invited.
Arrange an interpreter if the parent needs one. Reason: the school must take steps so the parent understands the meeting, including an interpreter for a parent who is deaf or whose native language is not English.^[2]
Get written excusals for any required member who cannot attend. Reason: excusal needs the parent's written agreement, and written input if their area is discussed.^[1]
Collect general education teacher input. A short form with grades, work samples and what works in class is enough. Reason: present levels need classroom data, not only resource room data.

1 week before

Draft present levels with numbers for every goal area. Reason: every new goal needs a baseline. See the present levels examples.
Draft goals and run each through the goal checker. Reason: it flags vague verbs and missing criteria before the parent sees them.
Draft services with frequency, location, duration and provider. Reason: these are the fields the IEP must state.^[6] The services page guide shows filled rows.
Check service minutes against the real schedule. Reason: minutes the schedule cannot deliver become missed services.
Send the parent a draft, labeled as a draft, if your district allows it. Reason: parents who read ahead ask better questions and decisions still happen at the meeting.
Book the room or video link, and print the agenda. Use the IEP meeting agenda template. Reason: a timed agenda keeps a 45-minute meeting at 45 minutes.

Day of the meeting

Offer the procedural safeguards notice. Reason: parents must get it at least once a year, and the meeting is a natural time to offer it.^[8]
Start with parent and student concerns. Reason: the IEP must consider the parents' concerns for enhancing their child's education.^[4]
Show data, not opinions, for each goal. Reason: "7 of 10 probes met criterion" leads to a decision; "doing great" does not.
Discuss services and placement as open questions. Reason: decisions made before the meeting deny the parent a real role.
Consider the special factors. Behavior, limited English, vision, hearing, communication needs and assistive technology. Reason: the team must consider each one that applies.^[4]
Record disagreements in the notes. Reason: a written record helps the team return to the issue and supports prior written notice.
Close with a summary of who does what, by when. Reason: action items without owners do not happen.

Within 2 weeks after

Send the parent a copy of the final IEP. Reason: the school must give the parent a copy at no cost.^[2]
Send prior written notice of the actions proposed or refused. Reason: notice is required before the school changes or refuses to change services or placement.^[7] See the prior written notice examples.
Give every teacher and provider their part of the IEP. Reason: each person responsible must be able to access the IEP and be told their specific responsibilities and accommodations.^[3]
Set up a data sheet for each new goal. Reason: progress reports need data from the first weeks. Free data sheets match each measurement type.
Enter the new review and reevaluation dates in the caseload tracker. Reason: next year's deadline starts counting today.
File signatures, notes, notice and excusals together. Reason: an auditor checks for all of them.

What to do if something is missing

Missing item	What to do
The parent cannot come on any date offered	Offer phone or video participation. If the parent still cannot attend, keep a record of every attempt: calls, letters, emails and visits.^[2]
A required member is absent with no written excusal	Reschedule if you can. If you hold the meeting, the IEP may need to be revisited with that member.
No baseline for a new goal	Write a plan to collect it in the first 2 to 3 weeks and agree to amend the goal, or pick a goal you have data for.
The general education teacher sent no input	Ask for 3 things by email: current grade, one work sample, one strategy that helps.
The meeting runs out of time	Agree on what was decided, set a second date within 2 weeks, and make sure the current IEP stays in effect until the new one is finished.
The deadline will be missed	Tell your supervisor before the date, document why, and hold the meeting as soon as possible.

Print version

Copy the headings and bullets into one page and keep it clipped to the student's working file. Initial and date each item as you finish it. The case manager's handbook places this meeting work inside the full school-year calendar, and the case manager checklist covers the rest of the year.

Frequently asked questions

How far ahead should I start preparing for an IEP meeting?

About 4 weeks ahead for an annual review, and longer for a reevaluation because testing takes time. That leaves time to collect data, send notice, and reschedule if the parent cannot make the first date.

What should a teacher bring to an IEP meeting?

Current data on each goal the teacher supports, recent work samples, the student's grades, and one or two strategies that work in class. Keep the update short and tied to the numbers.

What if the meeting ends before the IEP is finished?

Record what was decided, set a second meeting soon, and keep the current IEP in effect until the new one is complete. Tell the parent in writing what happens next.

Use it in IEP Atlas

Sources

34 CFR §300.321: IEP Team, U.S. Department of Education (IDEA website)
34 CFR §300.322: Parent participation, U.S. Department of Education (IDEA website)
34 CFR §300.323: When IEPs must be in effect, U.S. Department of Education (IDEA website)
34 CFR §300.324: Development, review, and revision of IEP, Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School
34 CFR §300.303: Reevaluations, Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School
34 CFR §300.320: Definition of individualized education program, Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School
34 CFR §300.503: Prior notice by the public agency; content of notice, U.S. Department of Education (IDEA website)
34 CFR §300.504: Procedural safeguards notice, U.S. Department of Education (IDEA website)

Written and checked by the IEP Atlas editorial team under our editorial policy. This guide describes general practice and federal rules. It is not legal advice; your state may add requirements, and the IEP team makes the decisions for each student.