Microsoft Reflect helps you create impactful check-ins to gain insights into your learners' well-being and build a happier and healthier learning community, all through one easy-to-use app.
To get started, go to the Reflect home page and sign in with your school or institution account. You can access it from any device, such as a desktop or a mobile.
You can also use Reflect in Microsoft Teams for education. Reflect in Teams is pre-installed and available for free in every class and staff team, providing a simple way to conduct check-ins with your students and colleagues. Check out the instructions on how to get started with Reflect in Teams.
Learn what you can do with Reflect
Navigate between the tabs to learn about these different phases: creating a check-in, sharing it, collecting responses, reviewing them, and managing the check-in. In the last tab, you will find answers to frequently asked questions.
Create check-in
You can easily set up regular check-ins for students, staff, and families to understand how they feel about any topic, in any language.
Having a space to share helps in building a learning ecosystem where everyone feels safe to make mistakes and grow.
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Open Reflect app. You will see your recent check-ins here. Select any of the existing check-ins to view the responses.
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Select New check-in from the top right.
Tip: For quick access to check-in creation, simply navigate to https://reflect.new.
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In the New check-in screen, choose from the available questions, use the sentence stem to create your own, or explore the gallery to get ideas.
Tip: When you create your own questions, choose those that invite a full spectrum of emotions in responses, as it normalizes negative experiences and enhances genuine interest.
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You can customize the check-in by selecting Settings fromthe bottom.
Note: To streamline your check-in creation, settings are automatically saved for your next check-ins, but you can update them at any time.
In the settings pane, you can:
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Decide how long the check-in should be open for responses.
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Decide which vocabulary set best suits your audience.
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Broad emotion vocabulary includes over 60 diverse emotion words that can help students expand their vocabulary.
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Simplified emotion vocabulary is focused on fewer, more basic emotions to reduce overwhelm.
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Decide if you want to record check-in responders’ name.
Note: If you record responder names, results will be shown in any case. If you decide not to record names, results will only be shown when there are at least 3 responses, to protect responders from being identified accidentally.
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Decide if you want to share aggregated results with responders.
Note: If you enable this option, aggregated results will be shared with responders only when the check-in is closed for responses and if there are at least 3 responses, to protect responders from being identified accidentally.
5. Select Create check-in.
You will see the Reflect check-in posted, and responders would be able to respond once the check-in is shared with them.
Tip: Before creating your check-in, you can select Preview to see the responder experience.
Share check-in to collect responses
You have control over who is invited to respond and what they can see.
After you create a check-in, a pop up with the share options will be displayed. You can copy and share the link or the QR to invite people to respond.
You can easily share the newly created check-in using the following options:
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Click or tap Copy next to the text box that displays a web address to copy the link. Once copied, paste this unique link wherever (e.g., a shared class notebook, email or Teams group) your intended audience can see and click to access your check-in.
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Tap the QR code button, and then click or tap the Download button. This action will download your QR code as a .png file. Once you have the .png file, insert it where your intended audience can easily access it. They can use a QR code scanner on their mobile devices or other compatible devices to scan the QR code and instantly access your check-in.
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Select the Microsoft Teams or Google Classroom icons at the bottom to share your check-in as an announcement, a message, or an assignment on those apps.
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You can also click on the Share icon at bottom to open the share tray on your device.
Collect responses to check-in
Users can respond to check-in once a link to a check-in is shared with them.
Tip: You can set an example by responding to your check-ins and modeling your feelings.
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Access a check-in by either scanning the QR code or opening it using the provided link.
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Select the emoji that best describes how you're feeling.
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Name your emotion by choosing the emotion word that fits with how you are feeling.
Tips: You can explore different emotion words.
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Tap on the speaker icon to listen to a human voice expressing and explaining each emotion.
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The Feelings Monster, a research-backed character for all ages, showcases 60 different emotions in an engaging and playful way, helping you authentically identify and name your emotions.
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You might see fewer emotions listed per emoji if the check-in was created with the simplified vocabulary setting.
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Tap Submit to share your reflection with your educator. (It’s brave to share!)
Note: You can hover over the eye icon to check if your name will be visible to the check-in creator alongside your response.
Review responses and gain insights
Using Reflect, you can gain valuable insights into where your learners are excelling and identify areas that require attention.
After you create your check-in, adjust its settings, and share your form with others, it’s time to view the results.
To view the results:
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Open Reflect app.
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Select any check-in from the list.
Tip: You don't have to wait until the check-in closes. As people respond, their reflections will be visible to you.
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Hover over any Feelings Monster to see the responder's name, emotion details and previous emotions selected by this responder in the check-in you created.
Note: If you selected, that names will not be recorded in the check-in, you will not be able to see responders’ name or the previous responses.
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Select Hide names to make together view safe to project as an empathy building tool.
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You can find other options to manage this check-in and track the responses, by clicking on the "..." button from the right top corner.
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Select Respond to check-in to open responder view. From that view, you can also respond to this check-in yourself.
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Select Copy view or Save as image, if you want to share the view with peers without responder details.
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Select Responses distribution to view responses based on the emoji responders selected. In the distribution view, select any emoji tab to see:
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Which user selected that emoji.
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How they named their emotion.
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How they responded to previous reflections. Hover over any of their previous emojis to see how they defined it and the date.
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Manage check-in
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Open Reflect app.
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If you are using the desktop, hover over any check-in from the list to see the management options. For mobile, swipe left to see the management options.
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These are the available options in the menu, listed from left to right:
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Responses distribution
View responses based on the emoji responders selected.
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Ask it again
If you want to reuse a check-in, and ask the same question with same settings again, click on the “+” icon.
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Share check-in
To open the share dialog, click on the “Share” icon.
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Open or close check-in
You can open or close check-in to responses at any time.
Click on the “…” on the right side and then select Close check-in or Reopen check-in.
Note: If the check-in is closed, there is no ability to collect any additional responses or edit responses for that check-in.
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Delete a check-in:
To delete a check in, click on the “…” and then select Delete check-in.
Note: Deleting a check-in will also permanently delete its responses. This action can't be reversed.
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Take a brain break
From guided breathing and mindfulness, through stretching exercises, to coloring books and games supporting the development of social-emotional skills – the brain breaks gallery in Reflect provides many resources to give everyone a much-needed “pause” to help navigate their emotions and formulate strategies to manage uncomfortable feelings.
To access the activities, open the brain breaks catalog. You can also navigate to the catalog from the Reflect app home page.
Open each activities category to explore its content and the associated benefits.
Mindful breathing and meditation offer lots of benefits, backed by science. People often start meditating to manage stress, reduce anxiety, and find peace of mind. There are also many studies showing other good things about mindfulness meditation, like helping with mental, physical, and emotional health.
Check out short mindfulness exercises in the Meditate section of the brain breaks catalog. They're designed especially for students, educators, and school settings.
Take short stretching breaks during your learning routine – it not only helps you feel better physically but also calms your mind.
Find quick exercises in the Move section of the brain breaks catalog. Spending a few minutes on simple stretches can help you focus better, reduce stress, and build important social-emotional skills.
Play is great for learners of all ages, helping them explore emotions. It shapes emotional development, providing a relaxing way to express yourself and reduce stress and anxiety.
Check out fun and engaging games in the Play section of the brain breaks catalog, where you can dive into emotions through interactive play and art.
Listen to calming music that helps improve focus.
Find the focus tracks in the Music section of the brain breaks catalog, and choose the right duration for your needs as it's displayed on each track card.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, you can simply access it from your browser on any device, such as desktop, tablet or mobile, without having to download a separate app. Microsoft Reflect runs on Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, and web platforms. Microsoft Reflect is optimized for Microsoft Edge and for the latest versions of Chrome, Firefox, Chrome on Android, and Safari on iOS.
Microsoft Reflect is thoughtfully designed to support a diverse range of learners, including Pre-K to Higher-education, educators, and staff. Collaborating with Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) experts, we ensured the app creates a positive impact and provides support to every user.
Microsoft Reflect is designed with inclusion in mind, supporting students of all abilities by offering powerful accessibility options that are built-in, mainstream, and non-stigmatizing. Inclusive features like narration, the Feelings Monster, and mindfulness activities open Reflect to more students with a wider range of abilities, helping them navigate and regulate their emotions.
Microsoft Reflect is available in over 50 languages. Reflect automatically detects the language of your browser or operating system where possible. If your preferred language isn't supported, Reflect displays either a related language or English as the default language. To change your language settings in Reflect, go to the upper right corner of the app and click on your name and then select Language.
With Microsoft Reflect you can be sure that your data and privacy is secure and that our solutions comply with international regulations and best practices. Reflect, as part of Microsoft 365, complies with regional and industry-specific regulations for data collection and use, including GDPR and FERPA. Reflect keeps your data confidential. You have complete control over who is invited to respond to the check-in and what they can see.
Microsoft Reflect is available with all Microsoft 365 Education SKUs, including our free version of Office 365 A1. To create check-ins, a faculty license should be assigned to the user.
Ready to use Reflect?
Get started with Reflect today by signing in with your school or institution account at https://reflect.microsoft.com.
In this website, you can also find free professional learning resources and guides to help you get started.
Feedback for Microsoft Reflect
We want to hear from you! To send feedback about Microsoft Reflect, go to the bottom right corner of the app, select “I love Reflect” or "I am disappointed," and provide feedback.
