How to Setup IEP Goal Bins

Setup for IEP Goal Bins and taking data for goals can be overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be! Let’s make it simple. In this blog post, I am going to walk you through how to setup IEP goal bins. IEP goal bins will help you keep your students’ goals and materials organized so you can focus on what’s important: the students and their data.

What is an IEP Goal Bin?

Simply put, an IEP goal bin is a container filled with everything you need to take data on a student’s goals and objectives. It is your one stop shop for each student’s data collection. I spent so much time my first year running back and forth through my room trying to find materials to take data, so I quickly realized not having them in one central location was not going to work. This bin system completely alleviated that issue. All you need is a container per student, a label with the student name, and the materials for each objective. Let’s walk through the setup of an IEP goal bin.

What goes inside an IEP Goal Bin?

The simplest way I found to setup an IEP goal bin is to go through the student’s IEP, make a list of objectives by goal area, and write out which materials I need for each objective. Once I have this list drafted out, I will gather up all the materials to put in the bin. When everything is ready to go, I will type a finalized list by objective to tape into the inside of the bin. For example, on the list I wrote “Math Objective 1: Number ID- printed number cards.” I do the same for each objective on the student’s IEP. The objective list lays out everything we need, so we are prepared for every goal session. It makes it simple for me and my staff to pull out what we need for whichever objective we’re tracking.

Data Schedule

We have a data schedule so we can map out which objectives we need to track each day. I rotate this schedule to ensure we keep valid data. I print the schedule out, laminate it, and attach a dry erase marker to it so we can mark off objectives as we complete them each day. There are so many goals and objectives we track daily, so we need a schedule to keep us organized.

This system made it simple for us to stay on top of all data collection. You can see an example of this schedule above. I color code each goal area so my staff and I know what type of objective we are working on. For example, all reading objectives are red, and all math objectives are blue. I color code on the data schedule, on the data sheets, and on the list inside the IEP goal bin. You can find the data sheets I use in the Simply Special Ed TpT store here. I use the editable version so I can customize the data sheet to fit our needs.

IEP Goal Bin Organization

Let’s talk organization. These bins clutter quickly, so I came up with a few ways to stay organized. You can use various sizes of plastic bins depending on what you need. You can find the bins I use here (affiliate link). On the outside of the bin, I Velcro a color coded laminated label with the student’s name to the front. I store the student’s data clipboard on top of the IEP goal bin so all data collection materials stay together, and I keep a color coded cover sheet on the clipboard to ensure confidentiality.

Inside the bin, I put all materials into plastic bags. I label the bags with the material name and goal area. What I write on the bag is the same as what I put on the list inside the goal bin. For instance, I’ll put sight word flashcards into one bag, and on the bag I will label it with “Reading Objective 1: sight words #1-10”. I include a separate bag for miscellaneous materials, like pencils, crayons, adapted scissors, etc.

Data organization doesn’t need to be complicated. It can be simple! My IEP goal bins have been a game changer for my classroom. I’ve added a video walkthrough below to show you everything inside the bins. I hope this blog post on how to setup IEP goal bins gave you some ideas on how you can better organize your data collection materials.

If you liked my IEP goal bin setup, make sure you check out my Socially Distanced Classroom Setup K-2 blog post here. Any questions? Ask away!