We sometimes groan about Canvas but if you use its built-in organizational features you can simplify your life and organize your course in a way that minimizes questions about where things are. As one faculty member put it, "Now that everything is organized in the course I get zero questions about where things are, what they're supposed to do, or when things need to be turned in. Zero."

Modules

We recommend that you place your content into Modules. A module is similar to a folder on your computer. It is a way to organize and store content. If your students get lost they can always click on the left Modules link. In that way Modules function as a table of contents. Another important feature of Modules that they automatically create a navigation system that can be paged through. At the bottom of every Module page you will see "Previous" and "Next" buttons so that your content is presented as a kind of slideshow.

Organizing Your Content in Modules

We typically see faculty organize content in Modules by week. This makes intuitive sense since we tend to organize our materials on a weekly basis. However, you may also organize your content by thematic topic if it spans multiple weeks. Modules can be subdivided by Headers. It all depends on what works best for you and we are here to help advise based on what we've seen work in the past.