Parts of an Individualized Education Program (IEP) explained in this guide will help parents understand the legally required plan that outlines the special education, services, and supports their child will receive to make progress and access the general education curriculum. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires every IEP to meet your child’s unique learning needs.
After a PCS or when changing schools/districts, you may notice that the IEP documents at your new school look different. However, according to IDEA, every IEP must include certain parts to ensure your child receives the support they need.
Procedural Safeguards
Parents receive a written copy of their Procedural Safeguards at least once a year and at key times (such as during an initial evaluation or when you request them). These safeguards explain your rights under IDEA. Some of these rights include your right to:
- Participate. Parents can actively participate in meetings about their child’s evaluation, identification, placement, and special education services.
- Prior Written Notice (PWN). Schools must provide parents with written notice before proposing or refusing to identify, evaluate, place, or provide services to a child.
- Informed Consent. Parents must give consent before the school conducts an initial evaluation or provides services for the first time.
- Access Records. Parents can review their child’s educational records at any time.
- Request an Independent Education Evaluation (IEE). You have the right to an IEE of your child at public expense if you disagree with an evaluation of your child obtained by your school district.
Demographic Information
The demographic information section is typically located at the beginning of the IEP. It includes your child’s basic identifying details, such as their name, date of birth, grade level, school, student ID number, and contact information for parents or guardians. Additionally, it may include the date the IEP was written, the date it takes effect, the date it must be reviewed, and your child’s eligibility category or categories for special education services.
The demographic section may also include your child’s primary language and the language spoken at home. Even though it is part of the “basic info,” this section has a direct impact on how your child’s educational needs are understood and supported. Recording this information helps the IEP team:
- Determine whether your child needs language support or English Learner (EL) services.
- Ensure assessments, instruction, and communications with your family are provided in a language you and your child understand.
- Provide culturally and linguistically appropriate services when developing goals and supports.
Parent Input Statement
Parents are equal members of the IEP team. The IEP must include your input, often listed in a Parent Concerns Statement, and may also include your child’s input as they grow and develop, allowing them to share their own perspective. This statement allows you to share your perspective on your child’s strengths, needs, and hopes for the future. This section helps ensure the IEP reflects the whole child, not just test scores or teacher reports. Here are key things parents may want to include:
- Strengths and interests. What your child does well (academics, social skills, hobbies, talents, personality traits).
- Challenges and concerns. Areas where your child struggles (academic, behavioral, social, emotional, communication, and daily living skills).
- Learning style. How your child learns best (hands-on, visual, structured environment, repetition, small group).
- Supports that help. Strategies, accommodations, or tools that work well at home or school.
- Long-term goals and future planning. Hopes for your child’s independence, college, career, or life after high school.
- Social and emotional needs. Anything about friendships, self-confidence, behavior, or coping strategies.
- Parent priorities for the year. What you hope your child will focus on or achieve in the coming IEP period.
Present Levels of Academic Achievement and Functional Performance (PLAAFP)
This section provides a detailed picture of your child’s current abilities. It explains what your child can do right now in school, both academically (such as reading, writing, or math) and functionally (such as social skills, communication, behavior, or daily living).
The PLAAFP is based on evaluations, classroom data, teacher observations, and parent input. It highlights strengths, identifies needs, and describes how your child’s disability affects their participation and progress in the general curriculum.
*The PLAAFP serves as the foundation for the IEP goals and services. Every goal must connect back to the needs described in the PLAAFP.
Measurable Annual Goals
The IEP includes measurable annual goals. These are specific skills or behaviors that your child is expected to demonstrate progress in within one year. Goals should directly connect to your child’s unique needs described in the Present Levels of Academic Achievement and Functional Performance (PLAAFP). Each goal must be written in a way that makes it clear:
- What your child will do (the skill or behavior)
- How well they need to do it (the expected level of success)
- How progress will be measured (tests, observations, work samples, etc.)
- By when the progress should be achieved (usually one year)
Progress Reporting
This section explains how the school will measure and report your child’s progress toward annual goals. It outlines:
- How progress will be tracked
- How often you will receive updates
- In what format (report cards, progress reports, meetings, etc.)
Regular progress reporting enables families and schools to collaborate and adjust supports as needed.
Special Education and Related Services
This part of the IEP outlines the specific supports and services your child will receive, including specialized instruction, speech therapy, occupational therapy, counseling, and transportation. It must clearly state:
- Who will provide the service (teacher, therapist, counselor, etc)
- Duration of each session (e.g., 30 minutes)
- Frequency (e.g., 3 times per week)
- Location (classroom, resource room, therapy room, etc.)
This ensures parents know exactly what help their child will receive.
Accommodations and Modifications
This section explains the supports in your child’s IEP that help them access learning and succeed in school, but they are not the same thing.
Accommodations are changes in how your child learns or shows what they know, without changing the learning expectations. Examples include:
- Extra time on tests or assignments
- Preferential seating in the classroom
- Use of a calculator or assistive technology
- Breaking tasks into smaller steps
Modifications are changes in what your child is expected to learn. They adjust the grade-level expectations to match your child’s needs. Examples include:
- Simplified reading or math assignments
- Fewer spelling words or writing requirements
- Alternative projects instead of a standard assignment
Accommodations and modifications are designed to level the playing field, allowing your child to participate in the general education classroom to the maximum extent possible. Knowing the difference helps you understand exactly how your child will be supported and what success will look like.
Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)
Schools must ensure that students with disabilities learn with peers without disabilities to the greatest extent possible. This section explains:
- How much time your child will spend in the general education classroom
- Why any time outside of the general setting is necessary
- What supports are being provided to keep your child included with their peers
The LRE section ensures that your child has access to the general curriculum alongside their peers, while still receiving the individualized help they need to make progress on their IEP goals.
Transition Plan
IDEA requires that by age 16, or younger if appropriate, every IEP include a plan to help your child move from high school to life after graduation. This section must:
- Set measurable post-school goals for education, work, and independent living.
- List transition services. Instruction, support, and activities your child needs to reach these goals.
- Identify who provides the services and how progress will be measured.
- Be reviewed yearly so that the plan can change as your child’s needs and goals evolve.
The goal is to give your child a clear path to success after high school.
Extended School Year (ESY) Services
The ESY section of the IEP explains whether your child will receive extended school year services and, if so, what those services will look like. It typically includes:
- Eligibility decision. Whether the IEP team has determined that your child needs ESY based on their individual needs.
- Services to be provided. What specific instruction or related services (e.g., speech therapy, occupational therapy) your child will receive.
- Frequency and duration. How often the services will be provided and for how long during the extended period.
- Location and provider. Where the services will take place and who will deliver them.
- Reason for decision. The rationale for providing or not providing ESY is often based on preventing skill regression or maintaining progress on IEP goals.
This section ensures parents clearly understand the who, what, when, and why of any extended school year supports their child may receive.
Prior Written Notice (PWN)
PWN is a formal way in which your child’s school explains decisions regarding special education. Whenever the school proposes, refuses, or changes your child’s services, they must provide you with written notice before the change happens.
This notice tells you:
- What the school proposes or refuses. For example, new services, changes in placement, or evaluations.
- Why the decision was made. The reason behind the proposal or refusal.
- Your rights, including how you can agree, disagree, or request mediation or a due process hearing.
- Options and resources. Ways to participate in the decision or obtain more information.
PWN keeps you fully informed about your child’s IEP decisions and lets you ask questions, give input, and advocate for your child.
Questions About your Child’s IEP?
Partners in PROMISE (PiP) understands military families sometimes need help navigating special education. If you have questions about your student’s IEP or special education services and supports, PiP offers free Special Education Parent Consultations.
Share your Special Education Experience!
Would you like to share your first-hand accounts about navigating special education while balancing the unique challenges of military life? Take 20 minutes to complete the PiP 2025 Military Special Education Survey. In doing so, you can help remove barriers, strengthen supports, and ensure all military-connected children with disabilities receive the education they deserve.
About the Author – Carla Wyrsch
Carla Wyrsch is the spouse of a retired United States Marine and mother of two. She has devoted her career to educating and advocating for children with disABILITIES. Her experience spans a variety of settings, including residential treatment facilities, military bases, public schools, virtual learning, and the Lerner School for Autism at the Cleveland Clinic. She is currently a special education teacher for her local school district. In addition to being an educator, Carla enjoys volunteering with Best Buddies of Greater Memphis, the Organization for Autism Research, and Partners in PROMISE as a content creator and advisory board member.
For more information on what IDEA states about IEPs, visit the Department of Education website.
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