The Self-Contained Skills Assessment Checklist: A Practical Guide for Special Educators & Homeschool Families

When you teach in a self-contained classroom, or guide learning at home as your child's primary educator, one of the biggest challenges is figuring out what to teach next for each unique learner. A well designed skills assessment checklist gives you a clear, compassionate snapshot of a child’s strengths and needs across daily living, communication, motor, and pre-academic domains. It also turns day to day observations into actionable, legally defensible data you can use for IEPs and instructional planning.

That's why I created a 30 page Skills Assessment Checklist following multiple domains of development and learning and I'm sharing it to you completely for FREE. Bonus is that its fully editable to meet your needs. Download it here!

If you are currently teaching in a self-contained setting or working with your child at home then you already know two things:

1. independence is built in tiny, teachable steps, and

2. great data turns those steps into steady progress

   
   

That’s exactly what this checklist is designed to do. It gives you a clear snapshot of a student’s present levels across daily living, communication, motor, pre-academics, and classroom learning behaviors, and then helps you turn that snapshot into targeted instruction and measurable IEP goals.

Below you’ll find what’s inside, why it matters, and a step-by-step guide for using the checklist to plan, teach, and monitor growth.

Why you need this self-contained skills checklist

1) It centers around the whole child. Self-contained and homeschool settings often support learners with complex profiles. A checklist organized by Activities of Daily Living (ADLs), Communication, Gross/Fine Motor, and Pre-academics captures growth that standardized tests often miss (e.g., “uses picture symbols,” “navigates stairs,” “opens lunch containers,” “follows 1-step directions”).

2) It turns observations into decisions. Consistent rating anchors (e.g., Always, Often, Some, Only with Support, Never) transform informal notes into trendable data. When you can quantify performance over time, you can justify accommodations, select evidence-aligned strategies, and track generalization across people/places/materials.

3) It powers individualized instruction. A granular checklist reveals entry points for teaching. Instead of “improve hygiene,” you’ll target “turns on water,” “scrubs for 20 seconds,” or “dries front/back of hands.” That specificity makes task analysis, prompting, and reinforcement plans straightforward.

4) It streamlines IEPs (or ILPs for homeschool). Present Levels, measurable annual goals, short-term objectives, and progress-reporting are much easier when your baseline is clear and your items are observable. Checklists also help teams (teachers, therapists, families) agree on what success looks like.

What’s inside the free 30-page checklist

Designed for elementary-age learners, this self-contained skills checklist supports special education teachers, homeschool parents, and therapists. Download it here!

Pages include:

• Student Overview: mobility, transfers, body control, vision/hearing, communication modes, attending, food/feeding/drinking, toileting, behavior.

• Daily Living Skills (ADLs): feeding, drinking, handwashing, toileting, dressing, hygiene, fasteners.

• Communication: modes (verbal, AAC, pictures), partner skills, responding to people/sensory input, following directions, requesting/protesting, early language.

• Gross Motor: standing/ambulation, stairs/curbs, playground navigation, balance, catching/throwing, movement with and without support.

• Fine Motor: grasp/release/strength, bilateral coordination, tool use, scissor skills, visual-motor, pre-writing strokes.

• Pre-academics: readiness/attention, matching/sorting/discrimination, receptive & expressive language for academics, pre-literacy/print awareness, writing readiness, early math, classroom learning behaviors.

• Editable Page: blank grid to customize for your program or child.

How to use the checklist (step-by-step)

1) Establish a baseline (first 2–3 weeks): Observe during natural routines (arrival, centers, toileting, mealtime, recess, small-group). Rate each item using consistent anchors:

• Always = 90–100% independent across settings

• Often = ~70–89%

• Some = ~40–69%

• Only with Support = needs prompts/assistance

• Never = not yet / rarely

Record the best independent level and the least intrusive prompt that helps (e.g., gesture, model, partial physical).

2) Identify priority targets: Pick 1–2 items per domain that are high-leverage for independence (e.g., “opens lunch containers,” “waits turn for 20 seconds,” “follows 1-step directions,” “counts objects 1:1 to 5”). Choose goals that will unlock broader participation and safety.

3) Plan instruction

• Task analyze complex skills (e.g., handwashing into turn on water → wet hands → soap → scrub → rinse → dry → toss towel).

• Choose a prompt hierarchy (independent → gesture → model → partial physical → full physical).

• Use errorless teaching for new skills, then fade prompts.

• Embed multiple practice opportunities across the day; plan generalization (different sinks, staff, materials).

4) Monitor & adjust. Reassess every 6–8 weeks. Graph or summarize % of items rated Always/Often. If growth stalls, tweak: reinforcers, prompt fading, visual supports, task sequence, or environmental arrangement.

5) Share progress with the team throughout the year. In homeschool, this becomes the Individualized Learning Plan portfolio—great for reviews and transitions.

From checklist to IEP

1. Present Levels

   • Summarize strengths (“matches identical objects 4/5 trials,” “ambulates independently on even surfaces”) and needs (“requires hand-over-hand to zip coat”).

   • Include context (where/with whom the skill occurs) and supports (visual schedule, first/then, timer, AAC).

2. Measurable Goals

   • Write goals from checklist items using the ABCDE frame: Audience, Behavior, Condition, Degree, Evaluation schedule.

   • Example: Given a visual task strip at the classroom sink (Condition), Jordan (Audience) will complete the 6-step handwashing routine (Behavior) independently on 4 of 5 opportunities across 3 settings (Degree), measured bi-weekly by data sheet (Evaluation).

   • Example - Communication: Using a speech-generating device, Ava will request a preferred item from a field of 4 symbols with no more than a verbal prompt in 80% of daily opportunities for 4 consecutive weeks.

3. Short-Term Objectives

   • Break the goal into milestones (e.g., “turns on water with model,” “dispenses soap with verbal prompt,” “scrubs for 20 seconds to song cue”).

4. Specially Designed Instruction & Supports

   • Note visuals, task analysis, prompting plan, reinforcement, OT/PT/SLP collaboration, and generalization plan.

5. Progress Monitoring

   • Use a checklist or tracker to log opportunities, prompt levels, and independence. Summarize growth in family-friendly language.

   
   
   
   

Driving instruction with the data

• As much as you can, group learners by need. Cluster students who share similar targets (e.g., fasteners, waiting, 1-step directions) for station teaching.

• Choose efficient teaching routines.

  • Daily living: embed instruction within natural routines (arrival, restroom, lunch).

  • Communication: schedule high-frequency requesting opportunities; model core words across the day.

  • Pre-academics: rotate short, high-success centers mixing matching, receptive IDs, and pre-literacy games.

• Layer universal supports: visual schedules, predictable routines, first/then boards, timers, finished bins, choice boards.

• Plan for generalization: new adults, rooms, materials, peers; vary the antecedents (e.g., different containers for “opens lid”).

• Collaborate tightly with therapists:

  • OT for grasp, bilateral coordination, fasteners, tool use.

  • PT for balance, stairs, playground access, mobility equipment.

  • SLP for AAC access, communicative functions, core vocabulary.

Homeschool adaptations

• Natural environment focus. Probe skills during real routines such as meals, errands, playground, chores.

• ILP vs. IEP. Use the same structure to write an Individualized Learning Plan with clear goals and progress checks.

• Flexible pacing. Work in short, frequent practice bursts (5–10 minutes) with movement breaks.

• Family input is gold. Include child interests to choose reinforcers and embed strengths.

Implementation checklist for you

• Print the 30-page checklist

• Make a class/home binder (tabs: ADLs, Communication, Motor, Pre-academics, Notes).

• Start baseline observations

• Collect data on your chosen data sheets

• Choose 4–8 priority targets (balanced across domains).

• Write/refresh IEP or ILP goals; align small-group plans and home routines.

• Reassess every 6–8 weeks; update families and the team with clear charts/notes.

Grab your free Skills Checklist

• Self-Contained Skills Assessment (editable powerpoint file)

Email me with any questions or concerns!

LeCha with Reaching Exceptional Learners