IEP Goals for Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia, and Behaviour: NZ Examples

IEP goals work better when they're designed with a specific neurotype in mind. The accommodations, teaching strategies, and independence targets that matter for an autistic student are different from those that matter for a student with ADHD or dyslexia. And "behaviour" goals, done well, target the underlying regulatory challenge rather than the surface-level disruption.

The examples below are structured for the New Zealand context — grounded in the NZ Curriculum (NZC) and framed in the SMART format that makes goals measurable and accountable.

Before getting to the examples: a SMART goal in the NZ IEP context has three parts — a condition (what support or context exists), a behaviour (the specific observable action), and a criterion (how well, how often, by when). If a goal you read in an IEP draft lacks any of these, it isn't functional.

IEP Goals for Autism (Takiwātanga)

Autistic students in New Zealand often have the most complex IEP profiles — spanning social communication, sensory regulation, executive function, and curriculum access. The research-backed approach prioritises neuro-affirming goals that modify the environment and build on the student's existing strengths rather than suppressing autistic behaviours.

Social communication: By the end of Term 2, using a pre-taught social initiation script, the student will initiate a brief, topic-based conversation with a familiar peer during morning break on at least 3 of 5 school days per week, without adult prompting.

Sensory regulation / environment access: By the end of Term 1, when experiencing sensory overload in the classroom, the student will independently access their personal regulation toolkit (including noise-cancelling headphones and a fidget tool) and return to task within 5 minutes, in 4 out of 5 observed episodes, without teacher redirection.

Transition management: By mid-year, given a visual schedule with a 5-minute transition warning, the student will move between classroom activities without absconding or significant protest (defined as less than 2 minutes of transition resistance) in 8 out of 10 observed transitions per week.

Curriculum engagement: By the end of Term 3, when given a topic-specific visual vocabulary chart and a task broken into 3 discrete steps, the student will complete a structured writing activity of 3 or more sentences related to a high-interest topic in 3 out of 4 scheduled writing sessions.

The Autism New Zealand School Accommodations Checklist — a free resource — provides additional specific environmental accommodations that can be written into IEPs. For autistic students, the IEP must also address the physical environment: seating arrangement, sound levels, visual clutter, and access to low-demand spaces.

IEP Goals for ADHD

ADHD goals in NZ IEPs should primarily target executive function — attention, task initiation, task completion, impulsivity management, and organisation — rather than generic "concentration" statements.

Task initiation: By the end of Term 2, when given a task with a visual checklist of 3 steps, the student will independently begin the first step within 3 minutes of instruction, without teacher re-prompting, in 8 out of 10 observed opportunities.

Task completion: By the end of Term 3, during a 20-minute independent work period with a visual timer visible, the student will complete a set written task with at least 80% accuracy in 4 out of 5 observed sessions.

Impulsivity / waiting: By mid-year, during whole-class discussions, the student will use the "hand up" strategy to wait for teacher acknowledgment before speaking in 7 out of 10 observed whole-class interactions, measured via teacher tally.

Organisation: By the end of Term 2, using a teacher-provided daily organiser, the student will correctly record homework tasks and required materials in their planner in 4 out of 5 school days per week, checked at end of day.

Environmental accommodation to include in IEP: Alternative seating facing the teacher; private desk setup or carrel for independent tasks; scheduled movement breaks (minimum 2 per half-day session); breaking complex multi-step tasks into chunked sub-tasks with individual deadlines.

IEP Goals for Dyslexia

NZ's 2025 Structured Literacy mandate means schools are receiving funded professional learning development for systematic phonics instruction. IEP goals for dyslexic students should reflect this shift — explicitly referencing Structured Literacy approaches rather than generic "reading support."

Phonics / decoding: By the end of Term 2, following Tier 3 Structured Literacy phonics instruction in a group of 3 or fewer, the student will correctly decode CCVC and CVCC words from a standardised decodable word list with 80% accuracy across 3 consecutive assessment sessions.

Reading fluency: By mid-year, when reading a familiar decodable text at the student's instructional level, the student will read at a rate of [X+10] correct words per minute (above current baseline of X) with fewer than 3 decoding errors per 100 words, measured via running record.

Written output: By the end of Term 3, when using text-to-speech assistive technology and a graphic organiser, the student will produce a 6–8 sentence response to an information text, including a main idea sentence and 3 supporting details, in 3 out of 4 observed writing sessions.

Environmental accommodations: Written instructions displayed on the board throughout the lesson; photocopied teacher notes provided; worksheets printed on cream or pale yellow paper; access to text-to-speech software for extended reading tasks.

IEP Goals for Reading (General — Below Curriculum Level)

Not every student with reading difficulties has a dyslexia diagnosis. These goals apply broadly to students reading significantly below NZC expectations.

Sight word recognition: By the end of Term 1, the student will read 30 high-frequency sight words from the NZ Ready to Read word list with automatic recognition (under 3 seconds per word) in 4 out of 5 assessment probes.

Reading comprehension: By the end of Term 3, following guided reading of a Level [X] text, the student will correctly answer 4 out of 5 literal comprehension questions orally, without re-reading the text, in 3 out of 4 observed guided reading sessions.

Reading for meaning: By mid-year, after reading a short illustrated information text at the student's instructional level, the student will verbally summarise the main idea in one to two sentences in 3 out of 4 observed sessions, without teacher modelling.

IEP Goals for Behaviour

"Behaviour" goals are the most frequently miswritten goals in NZ IEPs. The most common error is framing them as reduction goals for undesirable behaviour ("will reduce hitting to zero per day") without addressing the regulatory function the behaviour serves.

Effective behaviour goals target replacement behaviours and self-regulation skills — what the student will do instead, under what conditions, with what support.

Self-regulation: By the end of Term 2, when a frustration trigger is present (e.g., a difficult task, peer conflict), the student will independently use a visual Zones of Regulation chart to identify their emotional state and request an appropriate break using a pre-written request card, in 4 out of 5 observed trigger events.

Conflict resolution: By mid-year, when experiencing a conflict with a peer during unstructured time, the student will use one of three taught problem-solving steps (walk away, ask for help, use an "I feel" statement) without physical aggression, in 3 out of 4 observed conflict situations per week.

Classroom compliance (replacement focus): By the end of Term 3, when given a non-preferred task, the student will use a learned verbal script ("I need a break, please") to request a 5-minute break rather than leaving the classroom without permission, in 8 out of 10 observed non-preferred task presentations.

Environmental accommodations: Designated quiet breakout space accessible without teacher permission; visual calming sequences posted at the student's desk; predictable classroom schedule with advance notice of transitions; reduced sensory load in shared areas.

These examples are a starting point. Every student is different, and IEP goals must be anchored to the specific student's current baseline data — not copied wholesale from any list, including this one. The goal bank in the New Zealand ORS & Learning Support Blueprint goes further, with domain-specific goals across literacy, numeracy, social-emotional learning, communication, functional independence, and daily living — all structured for NZ schools and ready to adapt.

See more New Zealand guides →