Getting your Canvas course ready in a day


Strategies: Creating your course on Canvas fast

Do you have three hours or less to get your Canvas course transferred and built in time for the start of term? This is a great place to start! Here are some strategies for making that course easy to navigate, accessible, and ready on time for the start of the session. If you prefer a full video walkthrough, you can watch Get Canvas ready in a day.

You can also download the full, step-by-step Canvas Course Readiness Checklist (the link will prompt you to create a copy in your Google Drive).

Canvas has many features, but you don’t need to use them all at once. Focus on the following key areas to get your course ready for launch. You can always explore Canvas’ other innovative tools later. The hyperlinks in every step lead to a related Canvas guide for more information, screenshots, and guidance.

Don’t worry about making your course “perfect” or getting it all “done” before publishing. You can continue refining it throughout the term; however, have at least one full module ready for students by Day 1. Hide (unpublish) the rest of your course and release one module at a time after you’ve had a chance to create it or sort your migrated content. You can build the plane as you fly it the first term!


Step 1: Know your way around

  • Your course has a home page by default. Your students will benefit from seeing a customized Home Page (e.g. with a new banner image, a custom welcome message, and functional buttons).

    You will personalize your Home Page in Step 2, below.

  • In Canvas, your content goes into modules. These modules are similar to eClass sections.

    You will put your content in the Modules in Step 3.

  • Make sure you publish content to which you want students to have access. 'Unpublish' can be used to hide content.

    You will check the visibility of your content in Step 5.

  • To personalize an element in Canvas, find the Edit button: Canvas edit button

  • If you don’t immediately see the option you need (e.g., Delete, Move, Duplicate…), find a three-dot menu: 3 dots menu; more


Step 2: Build an accessible foundation

  • Personalize your home page so students know where to start:

    • Include a welcome message with basic course info and next steps, and remove the very last paragraph (the administrator disclaimer).

    • Either copy the Meet Your Instructor page from your sandbox to your course, then personalize it with your name and photo, a bit of information about yourself (e.g., your research domain, your connection to the course, your hobbies…), preferred contact method, and availability, OR add this information directly to your Home Page and remove the “Meet Your Instructor” button.

      • Don’t forget to update the hyperlink on the “Meet Your Instructor” button if you create a page (in Edit mode, click on the “Meet Your Instructor” button, click on “Remove link,” then Insert → Link → Course Link and find the “Meet Your Instructor” page).

    • Activate Simple Syllabus within your Canvas course menu and customize your Syllabus.  After that, you can consult and share your syllabus in the course menu or add it as a file to the “Syllabus” button on the Home Page (in Edit mode, click on the “Syllabus” button, click on “Remove Link,” then Insert → Document → Upload Document, and you will be prompted to upload your syllabus).

  • Customize the course navigation menu (in Settings → Navigation) to include only the necessary options. The top section contains the Enabled options, while the bottom section contains the Disabled options. Rearrange the menu items to what makes the most sense, for example from the most used to least used.


Step 3: Organize content in Modules

  • Use modules to structure your course by week, by theme, or by category of content. Use the + in the grey bar (the title bar) to add content to a module.

  • Create at least one complete module before the start of the semester with course content such as lecture slides or videos, a student activity or assignment, and a way for students to ask questions or get support, as needed.

  • Keep module names and content titles consistent and descriptive (e.g., “Week 2 – Global Perspectives”). You can use text headers (in the + option) to further divide content or add more visual hierarchy.

Step 4: Set up communications and assessments

  • You have the ability to schedule announcements in advance for common reminders (e.g., assessment deadlines). Create a welcome announcement so students know what to do on their first day of class.

  • Personalize the Q&A discussion and “Need help?” module so students know where to go for help.

  • Add key assignments and quizzes to your modules to make them available to students, making sure due dates, point values and weightings are accurate. Your Assignments index (accessible to you in your course menu) should reflect the course assessment categories and weightings in your syllabus. Creating your assignments here is how you build your Gradebook.

  • Check your gradebook settings (you might want to activate manual publication of grades as an extra safeguard), and use the Test Student to familiarize yourself with SpeedGrader.

Tip: Your Assessments index should reflect the course assessment categories and weightings in your syllabus. Review this tip sheet with a video for more information.


Step 5: Test and troubleshoot!

  • Use Student View to experience your course as a learner.

  • Ensure all necessary modules, pages, and assessments are published; students can’t see unpublished items!

  • Run the accessibility checker (available in the Rich Content Editor) to correct common accessibility issues and the link validator (in the course Settings) to check for broken links in your course content.

Putting it into action

Here are some questions to support your Canvas build:

  • Does my course structure make it easy for students to find what they need each week?
  • Have I tested my course from the student perspective, or asked a colleague or TA to take a quick look?
  • Have I clearly communicated to students how to get started in the course?

Remember that you can always request a consultation with a CTL Canvas team member for assistance with your course design. Reach out to eclass@ualberta.ca for technical support and troubleshooting.

Learn more: Additional resources