Safety Signs IEP goals
12 templates across 7 skills: community access & travel, sight word recognition, functional academics, science skills, braille literacy, auditory skills (Deaf & hard of hearing), independent living. Open any goal to set the baseline and target from your own data, then print the matching data sheet.
12 templates · 7 skills · K–2, 3–5, 6–8, 9–12 · How we write and review goals
Goals by skill
Numbers are illustrative; set targets from the student's own baseline.
Community Access & Travel Transition & Postsecondary Skills
Find the restroom using signs in public buildings
Finding places using signs
By the annual IEP review date, on community outings to a store, library, museum, or mall, when the student needs the restroom and the adult waits at a set point, the student will follow the signs to the restroom and return to the meeting point independently in at least 4 of 5 opportunities, across 4 consecutive outings, as measured by direct observation collected on each community outing.
Read posted hours and rules at community places
Reading community signs
By the annual IEP review date, given photos of 8 to 10 posted signs from community places (a pool, library, park, clinic, store) and questions about each, the student will answer when the place is open and what each posted rule says independently with at least 85% accuracy on posted sign questions, in 3 of 4 consecutive weekly probes, as measured by opportunity-by-opportunity data collected weekly.
Sight Word Recognition Reading
Read functional and safety words
Functional and community words
By the annual IEP review date, given 15 functional words and phrases (for example, EXIT, STOP, RESTROOM, DANGER, OPEN, CLOSED) shown in photographs of real signs and labels, the student will read each word or phrase aloud and say or show what to do independently with at least 85% accuracy on functional sign words, across 3 consecutive sessions, as measured by opportunity-by-opportunity data collected weekly.
Read signs and labels in the community or at a job site
Community and workplace words in context
By the annual IEP review date, during a community-based instruction outing, when a target sign or label from the student's list is encountered, the student will read the sign or label aloud and say or show what to do independently in at least 8 of 10 opportunities, across 3 consecutive outings or work sessions, as measured by direct observation collected weekly during community or work-based instruction.
Functional Academics Functional & Independence Skills
Read safety signs and state what each means
Safety and survival signs
By the annual IEP review date, given a set of 20 printed safety and information signs (stop, exit, danger, restroom, poison, no entry) shown one at a time, the student will read each sign aloud and state what to do when it is seen independently with at least 90% accuracy on signs, on 3 consecutive weekly probes, as measured by opportunity-by-opportunity data collected weekly.
Follow the direction given by a sign in the building or community
Following signs in the environment
By the annual IEP review date, during a walk through the school building past planned signs (exit, push, pull, restroom, keep out, office), the student will follow the direction given by each sign encountered independently in at least 5 of 6 opportunities, across 3 consecutive observed walks, as measured by direct observation collected weekly during a planned walk or community trip.
Science Skills Science, Social Studies & Digital Literacy
Spot hazards in lab scene pictures
Lab safety steps
By the annual IEP review date, given 8 photos or drawings of lab scenes, some with a hazard and some without, the student will mark whether each scene is safe or unsafe and, for each unsafe scene, name the hazard and the rule that fixes it independently with 100% accuracy on lab scene judgments, on 3 of 4 consecutive biweekly probes, as measured by work-sample analysis collected every two weeks.
Read hazard symbols on product labels
Everyday science: safety labels
By the annual IEP review date, given 10 real product labels or photos of labels with hazard pictograms and signal words, the student will name what each hazard symbol means and one safe-handling step the label gives independently with 100% accuracy on label hazard items, on 3 of 4 consecutive weekly probes, as measured by opportunity-by-opportunity data collected weekly.
Braille Literacy Vision, Hearing & Assistive Technology
Use braille signs and labels in the community
Functional braille in the community
By the annual IEP review date, during community lessons in public buildings with braille signs at doors and elevators, the student will find and read the braille sign or label and use the information to choose the right door, button, or item independently in at least 5 of 6 opportunities, across 3 consecutive community lessons, as measured by direct observation collected during each community lesson.
Auditory Skills (Deaf & Hard of Hearing) Vision, Hearing & Assistive Technology
Name everyday and warning sounds
Identification: environmental sounds
By the annual IEP review date, given recordings of everyday and warning sounds and a set of matching pictures, the student will name or point to the source of each sound independently with at least 85% accuracy on sounds identified, in 3 of 4 consecutive weekly probes, as measured by opportunity-by-opportunity data collected weekly.
Independent Living Transition & Postsecondary Skills
Match cleaning products to the job safely
Cleaning products and safety
By the annual IEP review date, given 6 to 8 real household cleaning products and a set of cleaning jobs on cards (glass, toilet, counters, floor), the student will choose the correct product for each job and state whether it is safe to use with another product independently with 100% accuracy on cleaning job and product-safety questions, on 3 consecutive weekly probes, as measured by opportunity-by-opportunity data collected weekly.
Safety signs goals come from community safety, functional academics, and sight word skills. They teach students to recognize and act on signs and symbols like stop, exit, walk, do not enter, poison, wet floor, and restroom signs. Recognition is measured with percent accuracy on a set of signs in photos or real settings, and acting on signs during walks or outings is measured as opportunities or a task analysis. Good goals name the sign set and whether the student reads the word, matches the symbol, or explains what to do. Teach in the real places the student goes and use the student's own mode to show understanding: pointing, saying, signing, or doing the action.
Matching data sheets
Each goal above links to the blank sheet built for its measure. These are the sheets this set of goals uses:
Frequently asked questions
Which safety signs should be taught first?
Start with signs the student meets often and that matter most for safety, such as stop, exit, walk and do not walk, and restroom signs. Add signs from the student's own community, job site, or routes.
How do I measure safety sign goals?
Use a set of photos or real signs and score percent correct for recognition. For acting on signs, count each sign met during an outing as an opportunity.
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