Four Steps to Building Your Course from Scratch
Determine How You Want to Organize Your Course Content in Modules
Canvas uses the Modules tool to organize course content and guide student workflow. You can set up your modules by week, chapter, unit, etc., depending on how your course is structured. Once you’ve determined your course flow, you can start to create Modules. You can also begin to add other content (like Pages, Assignments, etc.) directly from the Modules tab by clicking Create, or you can proceed to Step 2.
Add Assignments, Quizzes (Classic or New), and Discussions
Assignments Overview Video
Classic Overview Video
New Overview Video
Discussions Overview Video
In Canvas, all graded items are stored in the Assignments Index page (or, simply put, the Assignments tab). This includes Assignments, Classic and New Quizzes, and graded Discussions.
Before you can create a quiz, you will have to decide whether you want to create a Classic Quiz or a New Quiz; you can find information on the distinctions between these two tools in this comparison chart, or on the Center’s Canvas page under Online Resources and Help Guides.
The Assignments page is also where you can create assignment groups, which will help categorize your gradebook. An important distinction from ReggieNet is that you cannot create any gradebook items directly in the gradebook. The gradebook is only for grade entry, not for item creation; gradebook items will mirror the Assignments Index page.
Build content using the Syllabus tool, Files, and Pages
Syllabus Overview Video
Files Overview Video
Pages Overview Video
The Syllabus tool will appear in your Course Navigation Menu, and this is where we recommend you upload your syllabus. You can also add course-specific files (there is a storage limit for each course, so we recommend uploading video files to Studio instead) or begin to create pages using the Rich Content Editor (RCE). With the RCE, you will be able to embed media, include links, and format your content the way you want.
Add items to your Modules
You can create the items from steps two and three within the respective tool (e.g. within the Pages tool) or you can create them directly in the Modules tab. Either way, make sure that they are added to the appropriate module. This will help students successfully navigate your course. You can add any of the following to a module: Assignment, Quiz, File, Page, Discussion, Text Header, External URL, and External Tool. When you’re organizing your modules, you can also add a text header or indent an item to improve navigation.
After you’ve completed these steps, you can begin the process of finalizing your course. This will include setting policies, double-checking settings, and publishing!