Language disorders are among the most complex and heterogeneous conditions on a school SLP's caseload. A student's profile might involve weaknesses in vocabulary retrieval, sentence formulation, narrative organization, following multi-step directions, or understanding figurative language — and each of those deficits requires its own carefully crafted goal. This guide walks through the major language goal domains with 20+ ready-to-use SMART goal examples you can adapt for your students.
Expressive Language Goals
Expressive language goals target what the student produces: vocabulary, sentence length, sentence structure, and connected discourse. Always anchor these goals to a functional academic context where possible.
- Given a picture stimulus or story retell prompt, [student] will produce complete sentences containing a subject, verb, and object with 80% accuracy as measured by language sample analysis in 3 of 4 consecutive sessions.
- Given no prompting, [student] will use grammatically correct verb tenses (past, present, future) in spontaneous speech with 75% accuracy as measured by 50-utterance language samples in 4 of 5 consecutive sessions.
- Given a sentence starter, [student] will expand utterances using at least one adjective and one prepositional phrase with 80% accuracy across 20 structured trials in 3 of 4 sessions.
- Given a discussion topic relevant to classroom content, [student] will maintain a topic across at least 3 conversational turns using on-topic utterances with 80% accuracy as measured by clinician observation in 3 of 4 sessions.
Receptive Language Goals
Receptive language deficits are often under-identified because students can appear to understand more than they do by using contextual cues. Goals in this area should control for context and scaffold carefully.
- Given verbal instructions only (no visual cues), [student] will follow 3-step directions with 85% accuracy as measured by structured task data in 4 of 5 consecutive sessions.
- Given a grade-level reading passage, [student] will answer literal comprehension questions (who, what, where) with 85% accuracy as measured by structured probe tasks in 3 of 4 sessions.
- Given a verbal description, [student] will identify the correct referent from a field of 4 pictures with 80% accuracy across 20 trials in 4 of 5 sessions.
- Given a read-aloud passage, [student] will correctly identify cause-effect relationships and make inferences with 75% accuracy as measured by structured comprehension probes in 3 of 4 sessions.
Vocabulary Goals
Vocabulary deficits are strongly tied to academic performance, particularly in reading comprehension and writing. Goals should target both breadth (knowing more words) and depth (understanding word relationships, multiple meanings, and morphological structure).
- Given a verbal definition, [student] will identify the correct word from a field of 4 options with 80% accuracy for Tier 2 vocabulary words across structured trials in 4 of 5 sessions.
- Given a target word, [student] will provide a definition that includes the category and at least one distinguishing feature with 75% accuracy as measured by structured probe tasks in 3 of 4 consecutive sessions.
- Given a target word, [student] will identify synonyms, antonyms, or both with 80% accuracy across 20 trials in 4 of 5 consecutive sessions.
- Given a base word (e.g., "happy"), [student] will correctly identify and define derived forms (e.g., "unhappy," "happiness," "happily") with 75% accuracy in structured morphology tasks in 3 of 4 sessions.
Grammar and Syntax Goals
Grammatical errors in school-age students often persist and affect written language as well as spoken output. Goals should be specific about the morphosyntactic target.
- Given a structured sentence completion task, [student] will use regular and irregular plural noun forms with 85% accuracy as measured by clinician probe data in 4 of 5 consecutive sessions.
- Given a picture prompt, [student] will use third-person singular verb forms ("he runs," "she jumps") with 80% accuracy across 20 trials in 3 of 4 sessions.
- Given a sentence with a grammatical error, [student] will identify and correct subject-verb agreement errors with 80% accuracy in structured error detection tasks in 4 of 5 sessions.
- Given a verbal model, [student] will produce complex sentences using subordinating conjunctions (because, although, when, while) with 75% accuracy in structured elicitation tasks in 3 of 4 sessions.
Narrative Goals
Narrative skills are foundational for reading comprehension, writing, and social communication. Use a structured framework (e.g., story grammar elements: character, setting, initiating event, internal response, plan, action, consequence, reaction) to set measurable criteria.
- Given a wordless picture book, [student] will produce a narrative that includes at least 4 of 7 story grammar elements (character, setting, initiating event, internal response, plan, action, consequence) as measured by narrative analysis rubric in 3 of 4 consecutive sessions.
- Given a verbal or visual prompt, [student] will produce a personal narrative using temporal sequencing words (first, then, next, finally) with 75% accuracy as measured by language sample analysis in 3 of 4 sessions.
- Given a story retell task, [student] will include at least 5 main idea units from the original story with 80% accuracy as measured by story grammar scoring in 4 of 5 sessions.
Social Communication Goals
Social communication (pragmatic language) goals are appropriate for students with autism spectrum disorder, social communication disorder, or language disorders that affect peer interaction. These goals often require input from teachers and parents to establish meaningful baseline data.
- Given a structured social scenario, [student] will initiate a topic-appropriate comment or question with a peer in 3 of 4 opportunities as measured by clinician and teacher observation data in 3 of 4 sessions.
- Given a conversation partner, [student] will take 3 or more conversational turns on a single topic before switching topics with 75% accuracy as measured by structured role-play data in 4 of 5 sessions.
- Given a social story or visual support, [student] will identify the perspective (thoughts and feelings) of a character in a given scenario with 80% accuracy in structured tasks in 3 of 4 sessions.
Keeping Language Goals Manageable
Language disorders rarely occur in isolation, and it can be tempting to write a goal for every deficit area. In practice, three to five well-written, prioritized goals are more effective than a sprawling list of eight or ten. Prioritize the areas that most directly impact classroom participation and academic access.
SLPDesk automatically tracks progress toward each language objective, graphing accuracy data over time so you can quickly identify whether a student is on track, making faster-than-expected progress, or plateauing. This makes quarterly progress reporting straightforward and gives you the data you need to adjust goals mid-year when appropriate.