Goal Setting Teaching Resources

Teach students how to set goals and how to reach their learning goals with printable goal setting worksheets and templates, plus progress trackers designed to remind kids what they're working toward and more!

This collection of teacher-created resources was developed by the expert teachers on the Teach Starter team to help you help your students choose, set and reflect on their goals so they can strengthen their skills in the classroom and celebrate wins big and small. Help students manage their own progress and take ownership of their learning with smart goals setting.

Want to learn more about setting goals and how to help your students make goals that they can achieve? Read on for a primer from our teacher team!

Why Is Goal Setting Important for Students?

As teachers, we may have goals for our students, and their parents or guardians have them. So why is it important for students to set their own goals?

Goal setting touches on a host of concepts and skills developed within the SEL curriculum, from helping students build their self awareness to providing a framework to make informed decisions. Goal setting with your students will not only increase active participation and engagement, but it can also help them to develop higher-order thinking and create positive attitudes and behaviors toward learning.

Here are just a few of the benefits of goal setting for your students!

Self Awareness — When students set goals, they need to reflect on their strengths, weaknesses, interests and values — all foundational to being self aware as a human being. Goal setting encourages them to identify areas for improvement and sets a foundation for understanding their emotions and motivations.
Motivation and Resilience — Speaking of motivation, setting realistic and achievable goals empowers our students to strive for personal and academic growth while also instilling perseverance and resilience. Kids can learn to overcome challenges and setbacks on their journey to achieving their chosen goal, which in turn helps to foster a growth mindset.
Responsibility — Goal setting can help promote a sense of responsibility and accountability as kids take ownership of their learning or behavior — both! Depending on the goal set, kids may need to be responsible for managing their time and/or resources effectively to achieve their objectives.
Progress Monitoring — Setting goals is a great way for students to be put in the driver's seat to track their progress and celebrate achievements. When kids are regularly assessing their own growth, they get to feel a sense of accomplishment, which helps them build self-confidence and develop a positive self-image.
Decision-Making Skills — Achieving one's goals typically requires making informed decisions, a skill that students will use throughout their lives. They'll need to identify the steps necessary to reach their objectives and evaluate the potential consequences of their choices.
Social Awareness — Are you working with your students on collaboration, cooperation or empathy? Bring goal setting into the mix! Students can set goals for developing healthy relationships, resolving conflicts or contributing positively to their community.

Providing goal setting worksheets that scaffold the process of writing achievable goals is important for young kids!

How to Set SMART Goal Examples for Students

Goal-setting can be hard whether you're a student or a teacher. We're grown up, and sometimes we even set goals that are a bit too lofty!

When you're sitting down with your students to set goals, the SMART goal structure can help save students a lot of frustration by putting guardrails on their goals to make them more achievable in the long run. In this case, the letters S, M, A, R, and T each stand for something:

S: Specific
M: Measurable
A: Attainable
R: Realistic
T: Time-Bound

Some examples of smart goals for students might be:

I will read for 30 minutes every day.
I will get a higher score on my next math test.
I will finish my science project by Wednesday.

Students can also be encouraged to set personal behavior goals.

How to Use WOOP Goal Setting in the Classroom

SMART goal setting has become a widely recognized framework for teachers and students, but perhaps you need another option that is still appropriate for kids?

Why not try setting four-step WOOP goals? Let's break down the acronym:

Wish — Students identify what their wish or desired outcome is.
Outcome — Students visualize the positive outcomes and benefits of achieving their wish.
Obstacle — In step three, kids identify potential obstacles or challenges that might crop up and hinder their progress.
Plan — Finally, students create a plan to achieve their goal by determining specific actions they can take to overcome the obstacles and achieve their goal.

How to Set ABC Behavior Goals in the Classroom

If you're focusing specifically on behavior goals with your students, the ABC structure may be more appropriate as this goal setting framework encourages students to reflect on their actions and consequences.

Here's how it works:

Attitude — The A in ABC, attitude refers to the mindset and approach students have toward their goals.
Behavior — Behavior refers to the actions and habits students need to adopt in order to achieve their goals. These should be specific in nature rather than general.
Consequence — The final letter in the behavior goal framework emphasizes the outcomes or results that students can expect from their efforts.