Help students develop confidence and improve their time management skills with a smart goal worksheet.

What do I want to achieve? How do I know when I’ve made progress? What are my goals for this class or this school year?  SMART goals are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and timely. Goal setting is also one of the soft skills in high demand today. Helping students learn to identify and manage smart goals is a fantastic way to prepare students for life and work beyond the classroom.

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Things to Look for When Choosing a Smart Goal Worksheet

Accessible template

Goal setting can be difficult even for adults. Think of all the New Year’s resolutions that are sincerely made and then abandoned by the end of January. If goal setting is hard for adults, then imagine how overwhelming it might seem at first to a young person. Yet the ability to set, track, and meet goals is a soft skill that pays ongoing dividends. Streamlined and accessible smart goal worksheets empower students to identify tangible and manageable goals.

Clear sequences of steps

The most useful smart goal worksheets will have a sequence of steps laid out on a one-page grid. Students need to be able to see how big goals can be broken down into a series of achievable steps. Ideally, the worksheet can be shared with parents and caregivers and even displayed in the classroom so that students can share ideas and help each other succeed.

Goal setting is not a competition

Students should be encouraged to identify and meet their personal goals but also to learn that it is better to try again rather than quit if the steps toward a goal are not met along the way. A smart goal worksheet activity should be a fun way to increase confidence and time management, not another way in which a student is worried about “failing.”

9 Best Smart Goal Worksheets

  1. Goal Getters: Goal Setting Worksheet By The Language Of Learning

This packet includes two accessible worksheets than can be used at strategic points in the school year to help students define and monitor goals. The first printable page is a goal sheet with two goal boxes. The second printable page lets students take one of their personal goals and display it alongside others from the class. The worksheet also encourages students to reflect on why their goals matter.

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  1. Setting Goals Activity Pack By Socially Skilled Kids

This resource pack includes thirteen engaging resources that can be used with students at different grade levels. The activities are appropriate for the classroom, as well as friendship groups, lunch bunches, and other social groups. The activities help students understand why setting goals is an important skill and to distinguish between short-term and long-term SMART goals.

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  1. Student Goal Setting Templates: Set Personal Goals By Mister Harms

Goal setting helps students develop a map for personal success. This resource allows students to explore the fun and usefulness of goal setting and take ownership of their learning. The package includes pre-set questions, as well as an open template that lets students create custom goals. Teachers can use these completed worksheets as a platform for working with students individually or in groups.

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  1. New Year’s Even Mind Map: Goal Setting Activity By Joyful Noise Teaching

This fun alternative template introduces students to the concept of mind-mapping. The packet encourages students to set a word for the year and identify something that they want to try or achieve. Once students map their big goals, the use of SMART templates can help them refine these and make them achievable.

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  1. Goal Setting With Elementary Students By Mrs. Winter’s Bliss

The Mrs. Winter’s Bliss site has a range of goal setting worksheets that are designed for very young students. These easy-to-use templates introduce elementary students to the difference between a learning goal and a performance goal and to the concept of SMART goals.

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  1. Let’s Practice Writing S.M.A.R.T. Goals From Fairhope Middle School

This template can be used with middle-school and more advanced students. The SMART goal worksheet allows students to brainstorm freely and then identify a short-term and long-term goal.

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  1. Students Get Smart With Their Goals From Flocabulary

Flocabulary’s approach combines a short introductory video with a follow-up exercise to be done by students in pairs. Students are first given an opportunity to brainstorm and then specify SMART goals in conversation with each other.

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  1. The Importance Of Goal Setting For Kids From Fun Cheap Or Free

This site includes printable goal-setting worksheets that encourage students to think about different types of goals, such as financial, social, and spiritual.

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  1. Smart Goals Worksheets And Examples: Fun SMART Goals For Kids From Very Special Tales

This site includes worksheets and flash cards designed to help students learn the principles of SMART goal setting and build resilience and confidence.

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Where to Find SMART Goal Worksheets Online?

There are two types of smart goal worksheets:

  1. Free Worksheets
  1. Paid Worksheets

You can simply search Google or any other search engine with keywords such as “SMART goals and high school students” or “smart goal worksheets for elementary students” to find printable examples and lesson content that is relevant to your needs. In the education sector, many resources are available for free or at a very low cost, and often these are quite high quality. Setting SMART goals is a technique used in businesses and other high-level organizations and by many corporate leaders. This means that some of the material you find may be behind a paywall and come with a lot of “consultant-speak” that may or may not be useful to your students. You are the best judge of what materials can be effectively used in your classroom and at what price.

Teach Simple: SMART Goal Setting Made Easy

Teach Simple offers a cost-friendly subscription model that enables you to download worksheets and resources from our extensive library of vetted and curated content. We love learning and ensure that our content is age-appropriate, high-quality, and accessible for your students. We also keep the teacher in mind by providing clear and actionable ideas and instructions that you can adapt to your teaching style and course plans. Our material on SMART goals will assist you in introducing students to this valuable skill in a way that is engaging and memorable.

Final Thoughts

The world is changing rapidly. Many of the jobs that today’s elementary students will do have probably not even been invented yet. Giving students opportunities to develop soft skills helps to set them up for success in their personal and professional lives. A smart goal worksheet, geared to the age level of the student, is a powerful way to strengthen goal setting and time management skills.