Communication IEP goals when Tourette syndrome interrupts a sentence
Tourette syndrome interrupts talking with tics a child cannot delay, and suppressing them leaves little attention for conversation. The goal should name what happens after a tic breaks a sentence, not just how it sounds tic-free. Open your child’s IEP to the goal page and read one goal for three things: the baseline it starts from, the behavior someone could count, and the date it gets reported.
By The Advocate Ally, checked against the rules it cites. Sources checked September 17, 2026.
Is this your goal?
“Student will communicate appropriately and manage outbursts during structured classroom activities.”
It never says what an adult does the instant a tic breaks in.
What the rule says
“A statement of measurable annual goals … [and] [a] description of … [h]ow the child’s progress toward meeting the annual goals will be measured, and when periodic reports … will be provided.”
34 CFR 300.320(a)(2)(i) and (a)(3)
The rule’s own example of a periodic report is quarterly, issued with report cards: four updates a year.
The three tests
Every strong goal below passes all three.
BaselineWhere your child is today, as a number with its date, in present levels.
CountableA behavior two adults would tally the same way. Read the goal: what would you count?
ReportedHow often the number comes home. Check the progress-reporting box, then the last report sent.
Weak“Rory will find his place and keep talking on 9 of 10 tries, tallied daily and reported each quarter.”
Strong“When a tic breaks in and adults wait two seconds, Rory will find his place and keep talking on 9 of 10 tries, tallied daily and reported each quarter.”
Baseline
With no two-second wait, 2 of 10 resume.
Countable
Finding his place again: one countable mark.
Reported
Rory’s dad sees this count each quarter.
Without a named pause, adults decide moment to moment whether Rory gets time, and the wait becomes invisible and inconsistent.
IDEA requires goals to be measurable: 34 CFR 300.320(a)(2).
“Can we write down how long we wait after a tic before prompting him?”
Open the services page and check if wait time after a tic is written.
3rd through 5th grade
Weak“During a partner conversation, Rory will say his prepared phrase and finish his point, counted weekly and reported each quarter.”
Strong“During a partner conversation, Rory will say his prepared phrase and finish his point on 4 of 5 observed turns, counted weekly and reported each quarter.”
Baseline
He finishes 2 of 5 partner turns.
Countable
The phrase plus finishing counts once.
Reported
Weekly tallies add to a quarter’s number.
Without a target number, one calm week of finished sentences can outweigh a month of tics interrupting every attempt.
IDEA requires goals to be measurable: 34 CFR 300.320(a)(2).
“Where does the goal say what number would count as success here?”
Check the meeting notes to see if a turn count was ever written down.
6th through 8th grade
Weak“With one tic-break signal, Rory will manage his participation appropriately in class discussion on 5 of 6 tries, counted every two weeks and reported at semester’s end.”
Strong“With one tic-break signal, Rory will raise his hand and restate his idea in class discussion on 5 of 6 tries, counted every two weeks and reported at semester’s end.”
Baseline
He restates his idea 1 time in 6.
Countable
Raised hand plus restated idea: one tally.
Reported
Two-week tallies become one number each semester.
With no named action, a teacher can call silence proficient, and Rory never learns to rejoin class discussion after a tic.
IDEA requires goals to be measurable: 34 CFR 300.320(a)(2).
“What action would count as him rejoining the discussion after a tic?”
Open the goal page and check whether it names an action, not a feeling.
9th through 12th grade
Weak“Before a class presentation, with one rehearsed opening line, Rory will start on cue and continue past any tic without stopping, on 8 of 10 presentations.”
Strong“Before a class presentation, with one rehearsed opening line, Rory will start on cue and continue past any tic without stopping, on 8 of 10 presentations, reported each grading period.”
Baseline
Rory restarts from scratch three times in five.
Countable
Starting on cue past a tic is binary.
Reported
Each grading period sends a count home.
With no grading period attached, the count can sit unread for a year while everyone assumes the presentations are simply going fine.
IDEA requires the IEP to say how progress is measured and reported: 34 CFR 300.320(a)(3).
“Who receives this presentation count, and on what recurring schedule?”
Open the progress-reporting box and look for a date next to these presentations.
What to ask the team
How does the team tell a real tic from him refusing to answer?
Is a tic ever marked as noncompliance?
Who decides how long he gets after a tic before help comes?
An example is not your child’s goal: it does not replace the data the team starts from, or advice from someone qualified in your state.
Have every goal in your IEP checked against these three tests, free.
The review reads every page you upload, flags each goal missing a baseline, measurable criteria, a target or a timeline, and quotes the wording with its page.
