Articulation Goals: How to Write Measurable Speech Sound Goals, With Examples
A good articulation goal names the sound, the word position, the level (words, sentences, conversation), the support given, and how accuracy is measured. ASHA notes school goals must be measurable, usually as percentage accuracy or number of trials. Below: the parts of a goal and examples for each stage.
What makes a goal measurable
In US schools, an IEP must include a statement of measurable annual goals, how progress toward them will be measured, and when progress will be reported. ASHA’s guidance adds that goals should focus on needs affecting the student’s academic and functional performance and are typically written as percentage accuracy or number of trials completed successfully.1
| Part | What it specifies | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Target | The sound (or sounds) | /s/ |
| Position | Where in the word | Initial, medial, or final; or in blends |
| Level | How complex the speech task is | Isolation, syllables, words, phrases, sentences, conversation |
| Support | What help is given | A verbal model, a visual cue, or independently |
| Criterion | How accurate, how often, for how long | 80% of trials across three consecutive sessions |
The parts of an articulation goal.
The level column follows the progression ASHA describes for generalization — syllables, words, phrases and sentences, then conversational speaking.2
Example goals for each stage
ASHA describes speech sound treatment as moving through establishment, generalization, and maintenance. The goals below are illustrations of how each stage is often written; the SLP and IEP team set the actual targets and criteria for a child.2
| Stage (ASHA) | What the stage is for | Example goal |
|---|---|---|
| Establishment | Eliciting the sound and stabilizing it on a voluntary level | Given a model and a placement cue, will produce /k/ in isolation and syllables in 8 of 10 trials |
| Generalization — words | Carryover to words in each position | Will produce /s/ in the initial position of words with 80% accuracy across three sessions |
| Generalization — sentences | Carryover to longer, more demanding speech | Will produce /r/ in all word positions in self-generated sentences with 80% accuracy |
| Maintenance | Making the sound automatic, with self-monitoring and self-correction | Will self-correct /r/ errors during a 5-minute conversation with 90% accuracy |
Illustrative articulation goals by treatment stage.2
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Choosing which sounds to target
ASHA lists several ways to choose initial targets:2
- Client-specific — a sound that matters to the child and family (such as one in their name), a sound they are stimulable for, or a visible one (/f/ rather than /k/).
- Impact on intelligibility — errors such as initial-consonant deletion that most affect how well the child is understood.
- Developmental — following the order typical children acquire sounds.
- Complexity — harder, later-developing targets chosen to spark wider, cascading learning.
For developmental choices, US norms give the age band by which 90% of children say each consonant — for example, K and G by 3;0–3;11, S and L by 4;0–4;11, and R by 5;0–5;11.3
How many goals at once
The number of active goals reflects the “target attack” strategy. ASHA describes vertical strategies (intense practice on one or two targets until a criterion, usually conversation, is reached), horizontal strategies (less intense practice on several targets in the same session), and cyclical strategies that rotate through targets for set periods.2
- Goals for phonological patterns
- Data sheets for tracking goals
- The cycles approach
- Stimulability and target choice
For SLPs
Examples here are starting points. Write each goal from the child’s own assessment data, and keep the criterion and measurement window consistent with how you will actually collect data.
Frequently asked questions
What makes an articulation goal measurable?＋
It states exactly what the child will do and how success is counted. ASHA’s guidance on school documentation says goals should be measurable and are typically represented as percentage accuracy or the number of trials completed successfully, and that an IEP must say how progress toward annual goals will be measured.
What is an example of an articulation goal?＋
For example: “Given a verbal model, the student will produce /s/ in the initial position of words with 80% accuracy across three consecutive sessions.” The sound, position, level, support, accuracy, and measurement window are all explicit. The exact criterion is set by the SLP and IEP team.
How are articulation goals ordered?＋
They usually follow the treatment stages ASHA describes: establishment (eliciting the sound and stabilizing it on a voluntary level), generalization (carrying it over to syllables, words, phrases and sentences, and conversation), and maintenance (making it automatic, with self-monitoring and self-correction).
Which sound should be targeted first?＋
It depends on the approach. ASHA lists client-specific selection (such as a sound in the child’s name, stimulability, or visibility), impact on intelligibility, developmental order, and complexity-based selection, which deliberately targets harder sounds to encourage wider learning.
Put this into practice today
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References
3 sources from authoritative bodies. Last reviewed October 2026.
- 1.ASHADocumentation in Schools — Practice Portal page.
- 2.ASHASpeech Sound Disorders: Articulation and Phonology — Practice Portal page.
- 3.Peer-reviewedCrowe & McLeod — Children’s English Consonant Acquisition in the United States: A Review — Systematic review (AJSLP), 2020.