Instructor Quick Start Checklist

This checklist provides a high-level overview of steps to take to transition from face-to-face to online learning with Canvas. 

Step 1: Review support resources within Canvas.

• Go to the  Canvas Dashboard and click on the “Help” button to access a range of helpful resources and The Training Services Portal.

   

Step 2: Watch the tutorial

• Watch Preparing to Launch and make a plan
  • Identify a topic. What topic/unit/project will be the focus and what resources are available?
  • Identify practice. How will students practice with the information they are learning?
  • Identify the work. What should students to submit to show they’re learning your content? 

Step 3: Set up a course

• Review tutorials for building courses and managing course content. 
• Watch the video for course setup. It all starts with Modules which help organize content to control the course flow. 
  • Create a Module in Canvas and add content to it.
• Content can be a Page or any of the resources listed from the plan.
  • The Rich Content Editor provides tools to create and embed custom content (including video and audio) into Announcements, Assignments, Discussions, Pages, and Quizzes.
• Create Assignments for everything students will be graded on during the semester, such as quizzes, papers, participation, attendance, exams, etc. 
  • Watch the video 
  • Creating an assignment adds a column in the gradebook for the assignment.
  • If students are doing assignments online, create a page with instructions of what you’d like them to do.

Step 4: Enroll students.

• If the institution has not automatically added students, there are three ways to do it:
  • Manually
  • Using a “join code” for student self-enrollment
  • With a secret URL.
• Once students are enrolled, encourage them to customize their profile and notification preferences.

Step 5: Publish

• Publish the modules to enable students to see the content inside of the course.
• Publish the course to give students access to the course on their dashboard.

For more information visit the Canvas Community site for drill down guidance on each feature: Getting Started with Canvas as an Instructor.