Take Time to Explore and Prepare
Go Ahead — Click Around Your Courses
Navigation, Calendar and Help
We mentioned the two vertical navigation bars in Canvas:
- Global, on the far left, integrates all your courses that use a Canvas section/are available in the Dashboard
- Course, to the right of Global, allows you to access all content in the individual course you currently have open
When you have questions while working in Canvas, there are may ways to find answers. There are no unsolvable roadblocks.
- Use the Inbox link to contact your instructor with questions about course content, expectations, due dates — all the components of succeeding academically
- Use the Help link to find lots of resources about the Canvas tool, including Canvas phone support and chat, and the Canvas Guides (which are updated on a regular basis)
Keep Track of Due Dates
The Global Calendar displays all your courses' due dates. The Course Syllabus displays the individual course graded activities and due dates. Some course sections make available an Activity Stream to help you stay on top of assignments. You, however, need to track more information than is available in the Activity Stream, so keep reading.
BIG Calendar Suggestion: Also Use Google Calendar
Use Google Calendar to keep on top of your assignments, group meetings, community involvement, work hours, study time, play time, registration deadlines ... everything. You have a lot of responsibilities so be as organized as you can. Google Calendar Links to an external site. will help you succeed.
The Google Calendar Notification feature will remind you of due dates. This is especially helpful when you have two due dates for one assignment in Canvas but only one can be displayed. For example, if an instructor requires that you post two times in a Discussion — original post on Thursday and response posts on Sunday — the Canvas due date will be Sunday. Google Calendar will notify you of the Thursday original post due date if you set it up. Review your syllabi carefully at the beginning of the semester and schedule your due dates that Canvas does not include.
You may export your Canvas Calendar to Google, but not the other way around. Check out the directions to link your calendars Links to an external site..
Your Google Calendar is yours, semester after semester. The Canvas Calendar is yours for only the current semester.
Canvas Updates
Here is a question for you: