eMINTs Tip Cards Year 4

emints.org

Individual #eMINTSTips in this collection were published on
Tuesdays from August 2021 to July 2022 on eMINTS social
media pages. Follow @emintsnc on Twitter and FB.
Tip cards are color-coded by the eMINTS Instructional Model
(eIM) and/or eMINTS Facilitator Model (eFM).
emints.org

Establish Effective
Learning Communities
Make the most of group learning, coaching, and experiential
experiences. Be intentional about nurturing the traits of
collaboration, teamwork, empathy, and open communication.
Be a champion of
your people, projects,
and programs.
Encourage and
practice creative and
innovative thinking.
Engage and
include everyone in
the learning process.
Create a structured
and flexible learning
environment.
emints.org

A Tale of Two “Buildings”
Community Building
Team Building
Building Community...
● Establishes personal
connections.
● Builds relationships with
and among all members.
● Highlights individual
strengths of & to everyone.
● Builds trust and respect to
mitigate future conflict.
Building Teams...
● Identifies contributing
members of a “team”.
● Provides a common
goal to work towards.
● Establishes a purpose
to boost engagement.
● Gives responsibilities to
every team member.
emints.org

Fun and Funny Questions
Community building activities can help develop and
nurture positive relationships in your learning community.
Create or find a list of fun and/or
thought-provoking questions.
Offer your group questions and let
individuals determine which question
they would like to answer.
In a Round Robin, provide
time for each person
to share their question
and answer.
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Surviving:
Coming to Consensus
Build team connections by providing a survival
scenario; in the scenario, include survival items
teams will choose from.
Split the full group into small teams. Tell each
team they will need to agree upon 5 of the
“most important” survival items.
As teams finish their list, ask them
to share their list of 5 survival items
and explain why they chose them.
Team Reflection: Ask participants
what they noticed about the
building consensus experience.
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Every Day Giving
1. Ask individuals to write down what they do every day
of the week on a piece of paper.
2. Share an inspirational/informational video from B1G1.
3. Ask individuals to consider the types of tasks they
recorded, and then respond to the following prompt:
“How might I transform the lives of other people
as I go through my everyday tasks?”
4. Create teams of 4. Team members will share their
response and then brainstorm additional ideas.
5. Ask teams to share their ideas; recording
them on sticky notes, and posting them
around the room.
6. Provide time for individuals to roam the
room to view ideas and leave feedback.
emints.org

eMINTS
ProSocial
Teaching Tips
Prosocial behaviors include
student social skills needed
to effectively work with
others in and out of the
classroom.
How are you emphasizing
and developing
sessions/lessons to
incorporate social skills?
Social
Awareness
Responsible
Decision-
Making
Prosocial
Tips
Relationship
Skills
Self
Management
Self
Awareness
emints.org

Inductive Discipline as
Teachable Moments
Inductive discipline is a concept
in which facilitators help
learners understand the
behavioral expectations within
various settings.
ProSocial Tip
Social
Awareness
When someone reacts
inappropriately, an opportunity
arises to help them consider
more acceptable behaviors.
Make time to discuss social
awareness strategies that can
be used in the future.
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Inductive Discipline Scenario
Scenario: Your participant has started to miss more days of class,
isn’t completing work, & isn’t following along when present. While
responsive when prompted, their level of engagement has changed.
Response 1:
Communicate value
of individual’s
thoughts/opinions. Ask
what actions could be
taken to ensure they
will be a contributing
member of the
group.
Response 2:
Ask the individual
about what might be
preventing them
from attending &
being fully present
during sessions.
Response 3:
Ask the individual
what might make
the learning
experience more
meaningful for
them.
ProSocial Tip
Self-
Management
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Victim-Centered Induction
Helping someone
understand how their
behavior impacts others is a
huge step in helping them to
develop empathy and see
themselves as an integral
part of a community.
When addressing effects of
negative behavior, consider
what trauma a person may
have experienced prior to
the exhibited behavior.
ProSocial Tip
Self-
Management
emints.org

Victim-Centered Induction Scenario
Scenario: Two participants are rolling eyes and
speaking in sharp tones with each other.
Response 1:
It seems you both are
frustrated with each
other. Since this
prevents learning, what
needs to happen so we
can move forward?
Response 2:
Ask each participant
how they think their
behavior is impacting
each other.
Response 3:
How do you think your
behaviors are affecting
the other participants
and our learning
environment?
ProSocial Tip
Social
Awareness
emints.org

Social Skills Across Contexts
When social skills are
present, learners can
empathize, cooperate,
assert themselves, take
responsibility, and work
more productively.
ProSocial Tip
Relationship
Skills
Students with
prosocial skills have
better behavior, less
stress, greater academic
achievement, and are
more liked by others.
emints.org

Worst Job Ever
Use empathy and compassion to build stronger,
more effective teams. Have team members find
commonalities to encourage cooperation and trust.
1. Ask group members to consider the worst
job they have ever had.
2. Allow volunteers to share their “worst job
ever” and to include what made it so bad.
Provide time for all participants to share
their experience.
3. Invite participants to vote on
which job was officially the
“Worst Job Ever”.
emints.org

Relational Negotiation
Healthy relationships have a
natural give & take and when an
individual is open to negotiation,
they promote moral cognition,
emotion, and identity in others.
ProSocial Tip
Relationship
Skills
Negotiation is about reaching an
agreement, or compromise,
without arguing. Simultaneously,
it helps individuals better
understand motivations of others.
Engaging in negotiations
provides the chance to model
mediation resulting in higher
awareness of emerging cognition
patterns.
emints.org

Negotiation Strategies
Consider these strategies to practice reaching agreements. Encourage
learners to listen to one another and use paraphrasing when responding.
Four Words
Teaches that common
views can be found if all
members work
together.
Listening Exercise
Requires active listening
through different
experiences.
Orange Exercise
Challenges the
understanding of
negotiation as participants
search for mutually
beneficial scenarios.
ProSocial Tip
Relationship
Skills
emints.org

Natural Consequences
Consequences are natural
outcomes which follow
misconduct.
ProSocial Tip
Responsible
Decision-Making
When an expectation or rule
is broken, it is important for
individuals to understand
the natural process that
may occur.
Being able to identify natural
consequences prior to
someone making a decision
might result in fewer
negative consequences.
emints.org

Consequential Coaching
As a coach, present the options in a non-judgemental way.
It is important for the coachee to visualize, weigh, and
make their own decisions.
Pros
Praise
Promotion
Self-Confidence
Perception of Character
Stronger Bond
Self-Control
VS
Cons
Reprimand
Demotion
Self-Pity
Perception of Selfishness
Temporary Space
Impulsiveness
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Teaching Self-Awareness
Learners need practice and
time to understand
themselves.
ProSocial Tip
Self-Awareness
Focus a participant towards
growth instead of
achievements/results,
emphasizing the learning
process.
To teach self-awareness,
consider incorporating
strategic coaching questions
that promote self-efficacy.
emints.org

Coaching Self-Awareness
At the end of a lesson, offer reflection time focused on
what was discovered about how individuals study, listen,
learn, cooperate with others, and what was mastered.
Use the prompts below to support their awareness.
Option 2:
Option 1:
In what ways are you
growing as a learner?
How has your thinking
changed after going
through this process?
Option 3:
Explain the easiest
and most challenging
parts of this process.
ProSocial Tip
Self-Awareness
emints.org

Deliver Effective Directions
Delivering effective instructions can directly impact
learner outcomes. How might you evaluate the efficacy
of the directions you provide others?
What tone of voice
are you using?
Can you use
inflection for
emphasis?
How concise are
your prompts?
PHYSICAL
VERBAL
VISUAL
What does your
body language say?
Do your expressions
match your
intention?
Could pictures
be used instead
of words?
Do you provide
gestures as cues?
emints.org

Effective Physical Directions
Using proximity, body language & gestures can greatly
improve the learning experience. Consider your own
facilitation techniques by noting the following things:
➢ Where do you stand and/or sit most often?
➢ Is that location significant?
➢ When did you use proximity
to manage behavior?
➢ How do your facial
expressions impact others?
➢ In what ways do your gestures
align with your message?
➢ What examples do you use to clarify directions?
emints.org

Effective Verbal Directions
Easy to remember directions are vital for successful task
completion. When providing verbal directions, consider the
simplicity of your instruction in both the length & content.
1
2
3
Evaluate the overall complexity of the task to
be completed. The more complex, the more
steps needed in your directions.
Short & concise directions are easiest to
remember and follow. Precision in language
reduces the chance for misunderstandings.
Keep directions logical. Illogical steps can
frustrate participants, while logical steps feel
natural & create flow.
emints.org

Effective Visual Directions
When at all possible, consider using visuals to assist with
automatic start, continuation, & completion of learning targets.
Visuals promote the following learning behaviors:
Consistency - Consider a consistent place
to write directions within the learning
environment.
Independence - Use visual cues as task
reminders to encourage self-direction in
your participants.
Autonomy - Reduce repetitive questions
about directions & promote task
completion with visuals.
emints.org

Instruction with Intent
Set your facilitative intention at the beginning of each
activity. When preparing instructions, consider using
these reflection prompts to observe for efficacy:
I know the purpose of the activity was
concise because learners are…
When the learners are accessing the
materials, I see…
I know participants are aware of task
parameters because…
emints.org

Invitational Directions
Invitational prompts encourage engaged participation,
while abrupt directions may simply elicit compliance.
Invitational
Directions
Abrupt
Directions
I invite you to partner with your
table group and access these
resources. After discussing,
share your insights with our
community.
Find your group and read the
sections that pertain to you.
Discuss your topic, choose a
speaker, and report back to the
class in five minutes.
emints.org

Image Search Filters
● Open a browser of choice (ie. Chrome, Safari, etc.)
● Add search term(s) in search engine text field
● Click the “Image” tab at top of results page
● Click “Filter/Tools”
● Choose desired specifications based on
categories below for more refined results.
Color Type Layout People Date License
It’s not WHAT you use, but HOW you use it!
emints.org

Google Drive Search Filters
Use Google Drive search filters in Docs, Slides, and
Sheets to quickly find the files you need. In the search
field, select “Search Options” and search by the
following filters for faster search results.
Type
Approvals
Location
Item Name
Owner
It’s not WHAT you use, but HOW you use it!
emints.org

Gmail Search Filters
Quickly locate emails using Gmail’s
search filters. In the search field,
select “Search Options.” Use the
following filters for faster
search results:
Subject
Size
Date
To/From
Attachment
It’s not WHAT you use, but HOW you use it!
emints.org

Google Calendar Search Filters
Where?
Doesn’t Have?
Click within the
search field, & select the
“down arrow”. To select
additional filters, you
can narrow your search
by time, location, &
dates.
Who?
Date?
What?
It’s not WHAT you use, but HOW you use it!
emints.org

Take Back Your Inbox - Take 2
“Stacking” is a process you can use multiple times a day to
help you take back control of your email inbox.
The “Stack” Method
The Set Up:
Create 4-5 labels/folders.
Include a priority number
& 1 or 2 word action title.
1 - Reply
2 - Do
3 - Review
4 - Remind
The Process: (2 or 3 times daily)
1. Sort email based on action.
2. Process emails from #1-4.
3. Add new & remove stacking labels.
emints.org

Gmail “Stacking” Tips
Efficiency & effectiveness with new processes takes time. These
tips may streamline your transition to “stacking” using Gmail.
Schedule daily email “Stacking” times (2-3 daily)
Sort your messages & process beginning with
folder/label #1 & down.
After addressing messages, either:
Move folders by changing folder labels.
Archive by removing all labels. (All Mail)
Delete those no longer needed. (Trash)
emints.org

Managing Emails Tips
Create a vision for better managing of your emails
and work towards building a routine to read, respond,
archive/file, and delete the mail according to priority.
Schedule
time to
stack your
emails.
Name
folders
based on
your work
categories.
Delete
emails that
you don’t
open or
need.
Repeat the
stacking
process 2-3
times a day.
emints.org

Email Groups with Labels
Email your contacts quickly using a contact label.
Then, when you're emailing large groups, up to 500
external contacts can be included on a single email.
Open the
Google
“Contacts”
app, create a
label, & add
members.
Compose a
new message
in Gmail for
your group.
Add the
Contact label
created in To,
CC, BCC lines.
Send the
email & all
contacts in
the label will
receive your
message.
emints.org

Coaching for Planning
When feelings get in the way of planning help increase flexibility. First,
honor feelings & then be a guide through an investigation of options.
A participant might say:
I feel overwhelmed
when I get to school
everyday. There’s so
much to do; sometimes
I avoid all my planning &
talk to my coworkers
instead.
A coach could start with:
You recognize mornings are not
the most productive time for
planning & you prefer connecting
with colleagues at that time.
And then offer:
What options might you have for
planning that could help mornings
feel less overwhelming?
emints.org

Coaching for Reflection
Empower others to reflect on prior knowledge & experience. Craft
a response using a paraphrase & question to help compare prior
to current experiences.
A participant might say:
I wanted to make sure
my students were
thinking deeply, so I
tried to infuse good
questions regularly.
A coach could start with:
A goal was to help your students
think more critically & you used
questions to promote that.
And then offer:
After you adjusted your
questions, in what ways did the
student responses change?
emints.org

Coaching Around Problems
Encourage others to draw on past experiences & focus on things
within their control. Help others envision past successes to identify
potential strategies & approaches they might implement.
A participant might say:
I don’t know why I put
forth so much effort.
The students don’t
seem to care & I don’t
get helpful feedback
from my administrator.
A coach could start with:
You feel defeated; it is
challenging to not see the reward
from the work you put in.
And then offer:
In the past, how did you move
forward when others didn’t
respond in a supportive way?
emints.org

Coaching Students
Show students you’re listening & want to help them think. First,
paraphrase their comment and then provide a question to help
students begin to think about how to tackle their challenge.
A participant might say:
This assignment is
pointless. I have so
many other things I
need to worry about.
A coach could start with:
In comparison to what you
have going on, this assignment
feels insignificant.
And then offer:
As you look at all the things you
have to worry about, how might this
assignment fit into that list?
emints.org

Virtual Gaming in the Classroom
Ready to interact and engage with your students through gaming?
Slides with Friends is a great way to build community, poll your
students, or utilize with a presentation.
Get Started:
1. Head to slideswith.com
2. Click “Sign Up” to
create an account.
3. Choose a slide deck
template to use.
4. Have fun!
Scan the QR code
to quickly create an
account and get
started today!
emints.org

Guess the Picture
How quickly can your students guess what the zoomed in picture
represents? In Guess the Picture, participants are awarded points
based on how quickly they can use their critical thinking skills to
guess what the picture is.
To Get Started:
1. Find the Guess the Picture
YouTube Channel.
2. Choose a video to share.
3. Watch as your students
use critical thinking to
guess the image!
emints.org

Brackets & Building Arguments
Use a tournament bracket to help learners share argumentative or
persuasive presentations. Before “tip-off”, help them plan using a
Claim, Evidence, and Reasoning (CER) scaffold and your learners
will be ready to make their case and take it to the “Final Four”.
3 Tools to Build a Tournament Bracket:
• eMINTS Bracket Template
bit.ly/eMINTSBracket
• Challonge.com
bit.ly/ChallongeBracket
• Flippity
bit.ly/FlippityBracket
• BONUS: CER Scaffolds
bit.ly/TPTFreeCER
emints.org

Icebreakers OR Energizers?
The terms are often used interchangeably, BUT there is a
purpose for each. Consider your groups needs. Explore
instructional activities/games. Choose strategies that align
with your needed outcome.
ICEBREAKERS
Help people get to know
each other and/or
encourage team building.
ENERGIZERS
Increase energy and/or
ignite thinking about a
specific topic.
Meet & Greet
Participant Interaction
Establish Bonds
Establish Topic
Transition Into Work
Focus Thinking
emints.org

Games #FTW:
W O R D L E
Games engage participants in new concepts, require them
to take on different perspectives, let them experiment with
variables, and practice critical thinking skills.
W O R D L E C A N B U I L D
Persistence
Provide multiple
attempts with
meaningful
feedback.
Curiosity
Create mystery to
encourage
wonder!
Community
Allow for shared
experiences where
learners grow
together.
Wordle-ish Games to Try:
● WordMaster - Flippity
● MyWordle.me (customize)
● Word Master (no 24 hr wait)
●
●
●
Ooodle (from MathZones)
Globle-game (country names)
Spello (use a spelling list)
emints.org

Screencast with Screencastify
Use the Chrome Extension, Screencastify, to level up student
understanding & comprehension. Do you have a struggling
reader? You could use Screencastify to record your voice
reading directions, short articles, or even test questions.
It’s as easy as 1, 2, 3!
1. Download the
Extension in Chrome.
2. Record your voice.
3. Upload recordings
to your Google Drive
and share.
REMEMBER, it’s not WHAT you use, but HOW you use it!
emints.org

Grow Your Teacher PLN
A PLN helps educators refine their craft, connect with experts,
explore their interests, and collaborate with others.
Here are some of our favorite #hashtags / groups to search.
Facebook Groups
eMINTS Educators
Teachers Using Google
Workspace for Ed
Shake Up Learning
Instagram #’s
#emints
#teachersofinstagram
#classroommanagement
#edtechteachers
Twitter #’s & Chats
#emints
#edchat
#studentcentered
#STEM or #STEAM
LinkedIn Groups
Teachers Networking
21st Century Education
Technology in Education
Hacking STEM Educators
emints.org

Grow Your Inst. Coach PLN
A PLN helps Instructional coaches refine their craft, connect
with experts, explore their interests, and collaborate with others.
Here are some of our favorite #hashtags & groups to search in
your social media platform of choice!
Facebook Groups
eMINTS Educators
Instructional Coaches
Connection
Future Ready
Instructional Coaches
Instagram #’s
#emints
#professionaldevelopment
#digitallearning
#instructionalcoaching
Twitter #’s & Chats
#emints
#edtech or #edtechchat
#edcamp
#web20
LinkedIn Groups
Learning, Education, and
Training Professionals
The Education
Consultants Network
emints.org

Grow Your Admin PLN
A PLN helps Administrators refine their craft, connect with
experts, explore their interests, and collaborate with others.
Here are some of our favorite#hashtags / Groups to search.
Facebook Groups
eMINTS Educators
The Principal’s Desk
Primary School Leaders
Principal Life
Instagram #’s
#emints
#principals
#principallife
@transformative_principal
Twitter #’s & Chats
#emints
#EdLeaders
#eduleadership
#teacherquality
#EdPolicy or #EdReform
LinkedIn Groups
Great Schools: Inst.
Leadership Coaching &
Development
Educational Leadership:
System & School
Improvement to…
emints.org

Compliments & Kindness with
Google Jamboard
Create a classroom Google Jamboard with each of your
students names in a sticky note. Give each student access
to the Jamboard and allow them to write one compliment
or kind remark about their peers. Take this information and
type it up & print out for each of your students as a
keepsake from the school year.
emints.org

School Year Top Ten
1. Share a Google Form for learners to share their
Top Ten learning experiences from the school year.
2. Turn their responses into a whole class, interactive
game using a game-based learning platform like
Kahoot, Blooket, Quizizz, Gimkit, or Quizlet.
3. Let students guess who chose those experiences
as their favorites!
emints.org

End of Year Survey
Help reflect on the school year & better your
practice for the future. Get feedback from your
learners to find trends & success to build on!
Create a survey with
Google Forms. Ask your
students to share feedback
about the school year.
Copy and paste their
answers into a word cloud
platform and find trends.
emints.org

School Year Class Playlist
Music activates the brain in multiple ways helping to give
learners life skills needed to make decisions, focus, plan,
problem-solve, and juggle multiple tasks.
Ask learners to
choose a song
that reminds
them of the
school year and
share it in a
presentation
including their
“why”.
Link the songs
from YouTube to
their slides OR
create a playlist
using an audio
streaming
service.
Play the music
on the last day.
Share the
presentation
and/or class
playlist.
emints.org

Thank You, Educators!
“You can.
End of Story.”
- Cory Lewis
emints.org

Self Care for Educators
Take some time this week to care for
yourself so that you can give back to others.
• Have an evening of no screens
• Drink your coffee/tea outside
• Read a book for leisure
• Journal for 5 minutes
• Take a walk
• Breathe
emints.org

A Foundation for Effective
Professional Learning
Infuse purpose in professional learning from beginning to end.
Agendas:
Share an agenda
that includes
objectives and
relevant trajectory
prior to a learning
experience.
Activities:
Design activities to be
learner centered, model
expectations, and
engage participants in
learning outcomes.
Openers:
Choose an opener that
align to big ideas in the
agenda and plan to get
participants interacting.
Reflection:
Use dedicated time
to review and apply
learned
principles/lessons
to real life
situations.
emints.org

Communication Habits of
Highly Effective Coaches
“Most people listen with the intent to reply,
not to understand.” -S. Covey
Give a coachee the opportunity to talk openly about current
challenges or struggles with in their classroom & beyond.
Master the art of listening & then embrace paraphrasing!
You feel ______
about ______.
emints.org

Networking Tips for
Coaches & Facilitators
Follow favorite authors,
speakers, or influencers.
Follow people that do what
you do, or want to do.
Sign-up for a conference
and find new inspiration
Be a part of conversation,
both virtual and in person.
emints.org

Google Slides Remote Magic
Use your smartphone or ipad to control your Google Slides
presentation while simultaneously viewing your Notes.
1. Install Remote for Slides Chrome Ext. from the Web Store.
2. Open Google Slides in editor mode, then click on the
“Present with Remote” button.
3. Click on the “Start Remote” button to show the 6-digit code.
4. Enter the 6-digit code in the Remote for Slides.
*Alternatively use…WebApp - s.limhenry.xyz OR Android App - bit.ly/slides-lite
emints.org

Accessibility - Voice to Text
One of our favorite Docs & Slides tools is…
VOICE TYPING. This accessibility tool can help
support struggling writers for sure! It can also
increase productivity for all users.
emints.org

Create Custom Maps
with Google My Maps!
Have a geographical topic in your lesson? Open a
Google My Map inside of Drive and save your
personalized map.
1. Open Google Drive
2. Tap “New”, then “more”
3. Click on “Google My Maps”
4. Add your own places, directions,
lines, shapes & more.
5. Save, share, download,
or print your map.
emints.org

“The end of a chapter is just
the beginning of another.
Read on…the best part is
always yet to come.”
Susan Gale
Thanks for following
along our #eMINTS
Tip Card 4th journey
around the sun!
emints.org

Find more resources at portal.emints.org.
Watch for a new eMINTS Tip Card on
Facebook and Twitter every Tuesday .
Follow @emintsnc
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