A goal on my child’s IEP has no baseline

The annual goal names a skill, a behavior or a reading level, but the page never says where your child stood on it when the team wrote the number down. Not as it stands: the IEP has to carry a statement of your child’s present levels of academic achievement and functional performance, and a target is measurable only against a level that statement records (34 CFR 300.320(a)(1)–(2)). Start by pulling the IEP page or the letter the dispute turns on and writing down today’s date; every move below adds to that record.

By The Advocate Ally, checked against the rules it cites. Sources checked September 16, 2026.

What the rule says

“A statement of the child’s present levels of academic achievement and functional performance, including … how the child’s disability affects the child’s involvement and progress in the general education curriculum.”
34 CFR 300.320(a)(1)

This is where the baseline lives: the page owes what your child can do today, not only the target it is aiming at.

What to do this week, in order

Mark the goal’s target, then check the present levels for any score, count or sample on that same skill.
Two circled numbers: the target, and the missing baseline
Ask in writing for the assessment, probe or classroom sample the present levels rest on; those are education records you may inspect.
A written answer naming the assessment34 CFR 300.613(a)
Send the psychologist a note asking for the raw score or sample and the baseline number to add to the goal.
Your dated note asking for the baseline number
If the team adds the baseline by amendment, ask for a revised copy of the IEP with the number and its source written in.
The revised IEP copy naming the number and its source34 CFR 300.324(a)(6)

What to put in writing

Replace what sits in brackets and send it by email, so the date is fixed.

To: The school psychologist, copied to the case manager

Dear [Psychologist’s name],

The IEP dated [IEP date] for [Child’s full name] sets an annual goal for [skill], but the present levels beside it carry no score, count or work sample from when the team wrote that number down. Could you send me the raw score, probe or work sample the goal was built on, covering [date range], so it can be entered on [page] as a baseline. Should the team decide against adding one, please send that answer in writing, with the reasons behind it, as prior written notice (34 CFR 300.503).

Sincerely,
[Your name]

If the answer is no, it arrives as prior written notice: what was refused, why, and the records the district relied on (34 CFR 300.503(b)).

When to escalate, and to whom

Escalate when the written answer is a no, or when the record you built this week draws no answer at all.

The path	The count	How it runs
A state complaint	60 days to a decision	A signed letter to your state education agency about a violation inside the past year; the state decides in writing within 60 days.34 CFR 300.152(a), 300.153(c)
Mediation	Voluntary, at no cost to you	You and the district sit with an impartial mediator the state pays for; it can start before any complaint and may not delay a hearing.34 CFR 300.506(b)
A due process complaint	2 years to file	A hearing before an impartial officer; the district holds a resolution meeting within 15 days, and the decision is due 45 days after the 30-day resolution period.34 CFR 300.507(a)(2), 300.510(a)(1), 300.515(a)

Those counts are IDEA’s; your state may set its own window for due process, and publishes its own complaint form.

This page explains the federal rule, and it does not replace your state’s procedures, or advice from someone qualified to read your file.

Have the pages this dispute is about read back to you, free.

The review reads every page you upload, names the service, goal or wording that is vague or missing, and gives you its page number.

Review my IEP — free

Free, no card. It reads your pages and contacts no one.

Where this comes from

Present levels and annual goals (34 CFR 300.320)Home of the quotation, at (a)(1).
Education records you may inspect (34 CFR 300.613)The second move’s written ask.
Amending the IEP without a full rewrite (34 CFR 300.324)The revised copy, under (a)(6).
Prior written notice (34 CFR 300.503)What every no owes you.

When the paragraph needs to become a full letter, the letter templates carry one for each request.