NH Independent Living Goals in the IEP: Transition Planning for Daily Life Skills

Why Independent Living Goals Get Shortchanged

Under IDEA and New Hampshire's Ed 1109.03, a transition IEP must include measurable postsecondary goals in education, training, employment, and — where appropriate — independent living. That last category is where things get thin. Schools tend to write detailed academic goals and reasonable employment goals, then treat independent living as optional or tack on a vague line like "Student will develop independent living skills."

That's not a measurable goal. And for students who will need to navigate daily life tasks — cooking, managing money, using transportation, maintaining a living space, scheduling medical appointments — the independent living domain is arguably the most consequential part of the transition plan.

The problem is structural. Independent living goals don't map neatly to classroom instruction. They require community-based instruction (CBI), which means sending students into real environments to practice real tasks. That takes staff time, transportation, liability planning, and coordination with community partners — all expensive in a state where local property taxpayers fund over 83% of special education costs.

What Qualifies as an Independent Living Goal

A compliant independent living goal in a New Hampshire transition IEP must be:

• Measurable: "Student will independently prepare two simple meals per week using a visual recipe card, as documented by staff observation, in 4 of 5 opportunities by the end of the IEP year" — not "Student will learn to cook."
• Based on transition assessment: The goal must flow from a formal or informal age-appropriate transition assessment that identified independent living as a need area.
• Connected to a postsecondary goal: The annual IEP goal supports a measurable postsecondary goal (e.g., "After leaving school, [Student] will live in a supported apartment and manage daily self-care and meal preparation with scheduled staff support").

Independent living goals can span a wide range of functional domains:

Self-care and household management — meal planning and preparation, laundry, cleaning routines, personal hygiene schedules, medication management

Financial literacy — using a debit card, understanding a pay stub, budgeting for monthly expenses, recognizing scams, managing an ABLE account

Transportation — reading bus schedules, using ride-share apps, pedestrian safety, planning multi-stop trips in rural areas (particularly relevant in New Hampshire, where public transit outside Manchester and Nashua is extremely limited)

Community navigation — making medical appointments, interacting with landlords, using the post office, accessing recreation and social activities, grocery shopping

Safety and self-advocacy — recognizing unsafe situations, knowing when and how to call for help, communicating personal boundaries, managing emergencies

Community-Based Instruction in New Hampshire

Community-based instruction (CBI) is the delivery mechanism that makes independent living goals meaningful. Instead of practicing money skills with worksheets in a classroom, the student goes to a grocery store, handles cash, and makes purchasing decisions.

New Hampshire schools with strong transition programs integrate CBI into the student's schedule, often starting around age 16 when the full transition plan kicks in. Examples include:

• Volunteering at local nonprofits or food banks to build workplace social skills
• Shopping trips to practice budgeting and comparison shopping
• Using the COAST bus system (Seacoast region) or Manchester Transit Authority routes
• Preparing meals in a school-based life skills kitchen or community cooking program
• Visiting the local bank to practice account transactions

The challenge in rural New Hampshire SAUs is access. A student in Coos County may have no public transit to practice with, no nearby grocery store within walking distance, and limited community sites willing to host CBI placements. In these cases, the IEP team should document the barriers and explore alternatives — virtual simulations, school-based practice environments, or Extended Learning Opportunities (ELOs) that bring community experiences to the student.

The "Where Appropriate" Qualifier

IDEA says independent living goals are required "where appropriate." Some IEP teams interpret this as permission to skip them entirely for students whose cognitive abilities are stronger. That's a misread.

The standard isn't cognitive ability — it's whether the student's transition assessment identifies independent living as a need area. A student with ADHD who has never managed their own medication schedule, cooked a meal, or done laundry has independent living needs regardless of their academic profile. A student with autism who excels academically but struggles with unstructured social situations and sensory overload in community settings has independent living needs.

If the transition assessment doesn't address independent living at all, that's a gap in the assessment — not evidence that the student doesn't need support. You can request that the IEP team conduct an age-appropriate transition assessment that specifically evaluates independent living readiness. Tools like the Transition Planning Inventory (TPI) or the AIR Self-Determination Scale can surface needs that academic assessments miss.

Connecting Independent Living to Adult Services

Independent living goals don't just serve the student during the school years. They build the foundation for the adult services the student will access after exit:

• BDS Area Agency services: The ten regional Area Agencies in New Hampshire provide supported living arrangements, day programs, and community integration services under the DD Waiver. IEP records can help document the student's transition needs when the family coordinates with the Area Agency, but BDS eligibility and services are determined through the Area Agency's intake and assessment.
• VR New Hampshire: While VR focuses on employment, the IPE (Individual Plan for Employment) can include independent living services when they're necessary for the student to achieve their employment goal — transportation training to get to work, for example.

The New Hampshire IEP Transition to Adulthood Guide includes a decision-making worksheet for mapping independent living goals to adult service eligibility, so the skills your child builds in school connect directly to the supports they'll access after exit.

What to Do If Independent Living Goals Are Missing

If your child's transition IEP has no independent living goals and you believe they need them:

1. Request a transition assessment that specifically evaluates independent living readiness
2. Put the request in writing — email the special education case manager or transition coordinator
3. Bring specific examples to the IEP meeting: "My child has never used public transportation independently," "My child cannot manage their own medication schedule"
4. Ask for the IEP team to document in Prior Written Notice why they're proposing or refusing independent living goals
5. If the team refuses and you disagree, you can pursue the state complaint or mediation process through the NH Department of Education

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