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Grammar, Syntax & Morphology IEP goals

Grammar and syntax goals target the forms and sentence structures a student leaves out or misuses: plural and tense endings, pronouns, is and are, negatives, questions, and the complex sentences academic talk depends on. A good goal names one structure, sets a task that creates enough obligatory contexts to score, and counts those contexts as the denominator. Dialect is not disorder: forms that follow the student's home dialect are never targets, and the SLP confirms every target with the family and, for students learning English, with the EL teacher.

50 templates · How we write and review goals

Sample grammar, syntax & morphology goals

Numbers are illustrative; set targets from the student's own baseline (how templates are made).

  • PKFrequency

    Combine two words to express a meaning in play

    Two-word combinations

    By the annual IEP review date, during a 10-minute play-based language sample with an adult and preferred toys, the student will produce spontaneous two-word combinations that express a relation (such as agent and action "dog eat," action and object "throw ball," possession "my cup," recurrence "more juice," location "baby in") independently at least 10 times per 10-minute play sample, across 3 consecutive weekly samples, as measured by frequency recording collected weekly.

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  • PK, K-2Percent accuracy

    Say a three- to four-word sentence about a picture

    Subject-verb-object sentences

    By the annual IEP review date, given 10 action pictures showing a person or animal doing something to an object and asked "What's happening?", the student will say a sentence with a subject, a verb, and an object (such as "Boy kicks ball") independently with at least 80% accuracy on action pictures, across 3 consecutive therapy sessions, as measured by opportunity-by-opportunity data collected during each therapy session.

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  • PK, K-2Percent accuracy

    Use is or are with -ing to describe actions

    Present progressive (is/are + verb-ing)

    By the annual IEP review date, given 10 action pictures and asked "What is he/she doing?" or "What are they doing?", the student will describe the action with is or are plus the verb with -ing (such as "The dog is running," "They are eating") independently with at least 80% accuracy on obligatory contexts for present progressive, across 3 consecutive therapy sessions, as measured by opportunity-by-opportunity data collected during each therapy session.

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  • PK, K-2Percent accuracy

    Mark regular plurals with -s or -es

    Regular plural -s and -es

    By the annual IEP review date, given 10 picture pairs showing one item and several items and asked "What are these?", the student will name the group with the plural ending -s or -es (such as "cats," "buses") independently with at least 85% accuracy on obligatory contexts for regular plurals, across 3 consecutive therapy sessions, as measured by opportunity-by-opportunity data collected during each therapy session.

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  • K-2, 3-5Percent accuracy

    Use irregular plural nouns

    Irregular plurals

    By the annual IEP review date, given 10 picture pairs of nouns with irregular plurals (such as foot/feet, child/children, mouse/mice, sheep/sheep), the student will name the group with the correct irregular plural form independently with at least 80% accuracy on irregular plural contexts, across 3 consecutive therapy sessions, as measured by opportunity-by-opportunity data collected during each therapy session.

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  • K-2, 3-5Percent accuracy

    Mark possession with 's

    Possessive 's

    By the annual IEP review date, given 10 pictures of people or animals with belongings and asked "Whose is it?", the student will name the owner with the possessive marker (such as "the girl's hat," "Dad's keys") independently with at least 80% accuracy on obligatory contexts for possessive 's, across 3 consecutive therapy sessions, as measured by opportunity-by-opportunity data collected during each therapy session.

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  • PK, K-2Percent accuracy

    Use subject pronouns (he, she, they) in sentences

    Subject pronouns

    By the annual IEP review date, given 10 action pictures of single people or groups and asked "What is happening?", the student will use the subject pronoun (he, she or they) that matches the character(s) when describing the picture independently with at least 85% accuracy on obligatory contexts for subject pronouns, across 3 consecutive therapy sessions, as measured by opportunity-by-opportunity data collected during each therapy session.

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  • K-2, 3-5Percent accuracy

    Use object and possessive pronouns in sentences

    Object, possessive, and reflexive pronouns

    By the annual IEP review date, given 10 pictures that create contexts for object pronouns (such as "The girl is giving the ball to ___") or possessive pronouns ("The hat is ___"), the student will use the correct object pronoun (him, her, them) or possessive pronoun (his, her, their, mine, yours) in each sentence independently with at least 80% accuracy on obligatory contexts for object or possessive pronouns, across 3 consecutive therapy sessions, as measured by opportunity-by-opportunity data collected during each therapy session.

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  • K-2, 3-5Percent accuracy

    Use a, an, the, this, and that in sentences

    Articles and demonstratives

    By the annual IEP review date, given 10 pictures or objects and asked to say a sentence about each, the student will produce an article (a, an, the) before each singular noun that requires one independently with at least 85% accuracy on obligatory contexts for articles, across 3 consecutive therapy sessions, as measured by opportunity-by-opportunity data collected during each therapy session.

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  • K-2, 3-5Percent accuracy

    Use is, are, was, and were to match the subject

    Copula and auxiliary agreement

    By the annual IEP review date, given 10 pictures of single and multiple people or things and asked to describe them with a describing word or an action, the student will produce is or are (and was or were for past events) matching the subject in each sentence independently with at least 80% accuracy on obligatory contexts for is, are, was, or were, across 3 consecutive therapy sessions, as measured by opportunity-by-opportunity data collected during each therapy session.

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  • K-2, 3-5Percent accuracy

    Mark third-person singular verbs with -s

    Third-person singular -s

    By the annual IEP review date, given 10 pictures of people doing routine actions and asked "What does he/she do every day?", the student will produce the -s ending on verbs with a singular third-person subject (such as "She walks," "The bee buzzes") independently with at least 80% accuracy on obligatory contexts for third-person singular -s, across 3 consecutive therapy sessions, as measured by opportunity-by-opportunity data collected during each therapy session.

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  • K-2, 3-5Percent accuracy

    Mark past events with regular past tense -ed

    Regular past tense -ed

    By the annual IEP review date, given 10 picture pairs showing an action in progress and then completed and asked "What happened?", the student will produce the -ed ending on regular verbs when telling about completed events (such as "jumped," "painted") independently with at least 80% accuracy on obligatory contexts for regular past tense, across 3 consecutive therapy sessions, as measured by opportunity-by-opportunity data collected during each therapy session.

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38 more grammar, syntax & morphology templates

Each opens in the builder with its sample goal, notes, objectives, and data sheet.

What grammar, syntax & morphology involves

  • Combining two words and then building subject-verb-object sentences
  • Marking plurals, possession, present progressive, past tense, and third-person -s
  • Using subject, object, and possessive pronouns, articles, and is, are, was, and were
  • Forming negatives, yes/no questions, and wh- questions with correct word order
  • Using comparatives, compound sentences, complex sentences, and relative clauses
  • Noticing and fixing grammar errors and carrying structures into conversation

Baseline and measurement considerations

  • Use obligatory contexts as the denominator: count every place the form is required, not only the times it appears.
  • Score one structure per goal so the data say which form is improving.
  • Rule out speech sound causes first; a student who deletes final consonants will look like they omit -s and -ed.
  • Elicited picture tasks overestimate spontaneous use, so collect a language sample every few weeks for carryover.
  • Record and transcribe conversational samples; unstressed endings and articles are easy to miss in real time.
  • Document the dialect information gathered from the family before choosing targets.

Progress-monitoring methods used in these templates

  • Frequency (event) recording: Each occurrence of a clearly defined behavior is tallied during a fixed observation period.
  • Opportunity (trial) recording: Each planned or naturally occurring opportunity is recorded as correct/independent, prompted, or not demonstrated.
  • Work-sample analysis: Scoring completed student work (permanent products) against a defined answer key or checklist.
  • Direct observation: An adult observes and records the defined behavior during a specified activity.
  • Rubric scoring: Work or performance is scored against written criteria with defined score levels.

How each measure works

Matching data sheets

Each template links to a blank sheet built for its measure. You can also download these sheets on their own:

  • Frequency & rate tracker: Counts a defined behavior during a fixed observation period. Calculates rate when time is recorded.
  • Accuracy tracker: Number correct out of number attempted, with percent accuracy and support level.
  • Opportunity tracker: Records each opportunity as independent, prompted, or not demonstrated.
  • Rubric tracker: Scores each rubric criterion and totals the score for each sample.

Common mistakes when writing grammar, syntax & morphology goals

  • Writing "will use correct grammar" without naming the structure.
  • Targeting dialect features such as zero copula or regularized past tense as errors.
  • Counting only correct productions and ignoring the contexts where the form was omitted.
  • Scoring several structures in one probe, so no one can tell which is improving.
  • Treating overgeneralizations like "goed" as failure; they show the regular rule has been learned.
  • Starting an English learner on grammar goals without evidence of a disorder in both languages.

Frequently asked questions

How do I write an IEP goal for grammar or syntax?

Name one structure (regular past tense -ed, subject pronouns, yes/no questions), describe the task that creates at least 10 obligatory contexts, and set a percent accuracy with a mastery rule across sessions. Add a progression from imitation or sentence completion to spontaneous use. The templates on this page are written this way.

What is an obligatory context?

A place in an utterance where standard grammar requires a form, such as the plural ending after "two" or the past tense after "yesterday." Counting obligatory contexts lets accuracy reflect how often the form is used when it is needed, not just how many times it was heard.

Which grammar goal should come first?

Usually the form that appears earliest in development and that the student is beginning to attempt: present progressive -ing, plural -s, and subject pronouns before third-person -s or irregular past tense. The SLP's language sample and the student's stimulability decide the order; a form the student imitates correctly is a good first target.

Is a grammar goal appropriate for a student who speaks a dialect or is learning English?

Only when an evaluation shows a language disorder, not a dialect difference or a normal stage of learning English. Forms that follow the home dialect are not errors. Ask the family what they hear at home, and involve the EL teacher before choosing any target.

How often should I collect data on grammar goals?

Structured probes of 10 untrained items fit into every therapy session. Add a recorded conversational sample about once a month to check whether the structure is carrying over, and note any difference between therapy and classroom speech.

What is the difference between syntax and morphology?

Morphology covers word endings and small function words (plural -s, past -ed, articles). Syntax covers word order and sentence structure (questions, negatives, complex sentences). Many students need goals in both, and the templates are split so each goal targets one.

References

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