Some teachers prefer watching the full video tutorial, while others just want the written steps.
This post is the text version of Episode 1. You can follow it together with the video, or use it as a quick reference when setting up your own Canvas course.
What we are doing in this episode
In this episode, we are creating a new course in Canvas and checking the basic course settings before adding lessons, assignments, quizzes, or other content.
This is the first real step in building a Canvas course.
By the end, you should have a new course with:
- a course name
- a course code or short name
- course dates
- time zone
- language settings
- visibility settings
You do not need to build the full course yet. For now, we are only setting up the foundation.
Step 1: Go to your Canvas Dashboard
First, log in to Canvas and open your Dashboard.
This is usually the first page you see after logging in. It shows your courses and gives you access to the main parts of Canvas.
Look for a button that lets you create a new course.
Depending on your school’s Canvas setup, the button may be called:
- Start a New Course
- Create a Course
- or something similar
If you do not see this button, do not panic. Some schools do not allow teachers to create courses by themselves.
In that case, your school admin may need to create the course for you first.
Step 2: Create the new course
Click Start a New Course or Create a Course.
Canvas will ask for some basic information.
The first thing you need to enter is the course name.
This is the full name students will see when they open the course.
For example:
Introduction to Digital Learning
Next, Canvas may ask for a short name or course code.
This is usually a shorter version of the course name.
For example:
DIGI101
A short course code is useful if you teach multiple classes, because it makes each course easier to recognize.
Canvas may also ask you to choose a content license.
If your school does not give you a specific instruction, you can usually leave the default option selected.
Here's the final example we've done so far
After that, click Create Course.
Canvas will now open your new course.
At this point, the course may look very empty. That is normal.
Before adding lessons, assignments, or quizzes, it is a good idea to check the basic settings first.
Step 3: Open the course settings
Inside the course, look at the course navigation menu on the left side.
Click Settings.
This page controls the main information for your course.
Here, you can check and edit things like:
- course name
- course code
- course time zone
- course dates
- language
- visibility settings
This is also where you may find the course image area.
If you want your course to look more polished, you can design a simple banner or course image and upload it here. (Canva, Photoshop, PowerPoint, Affinity - whatever tools you'd like to use).
This is optional, but it can make the course easier to recognize, especially for students who have many courses on their Dashboard.
Step 4: Check the course name and course code
First, check the course name.
Make sure it is clear and easy for students to understand.
A good course name should tell students exactly what the course is about.
Next, check the course code.
The course code should be short, simple, and recognizable.
For example, instead of using a long title again, you can use something like:
DIGI101
This helps keep the course clean and easy to identify.
Step 5: Check the course dates
Now scroll down to the course date settings.
Your Canvas course may show a start date and an end date.
The start date controls when the course begins.
The end date controls when the course finishes.
For example, if this is a semester course, you can set the start date to the first day of class and the end date to the last day of the semester.
If you are only practicing or testing Canvas, you can leave the dates as they are.
Step 6: Check the time zone
Next, check the time zone.
This is important because assignment and quiz deadlines depend on the course time zone.
If the time zone is wrong, students may see confusing due dates or submission times.
Make sure the time zone matches your school or your students’ location.
Step 7: Check the language setting
After that, check the language setting.
Most of the time, you can leave this as the default.
But if your school uses Canvas in a specific language, make sure the course language matches what your students are expected to use.
Step 8: Check the visibility settings
Now look at the visibility settings.
This controls who can see the course.
Your school may already control this setting for you, so you might not be able to change it.
If your course is not ready yet, do not publish it too early.
Publishing means students may be able to access the course, depending on your school’s setup.
For now, it is better to keep the course unpublished while you are still building it.
Step 9: Save your changes
Before leaving the settings page, scroll down and click Update Course Details if you made any changes.
This saves your course settings.
If you do not click the save button, your changes may not be applied.
What we finished in this episode
In this episode, we created a new Canvas course and checked the basic setup.
We looked at:
- creating a course
- entering the course name
- adding a course code
- checking course dates
- checking the time zone
- checking the language
- reviewing visibility settings
- saving the course details
That is enough for the first step.
The course does not need to be perfect yet. We just need the basic setup ready before adding content.
