Recommended timeframe: as soon as possible

•  Complete E1: Online Faculty Orientation to explore best practices in online pedagogy
•  Take the Canvas Instructor Training course if needed to familiarize yourself with navigating Canvas

Recommended timeframe: 6 weeks prior to start of term

Course Framework Setup

•  If desired, import the “Miami Regionals Canvas Course Template for Fall 2020” from Canvas Commons into your Fall course(s) to get a head start on creating your course framework.
•  Determine the best way to organize your course modules (i.e. by day/class session, by course unit, by chapter, etc.) and add or delete modules from your course as needed.
  •  If desired, schedule an Announcement letting students know their course is structured using Modules and how they can navigate course content.

Syllabus & Instructor Information

Note: You must use the Syllabus page in your Canvas course site for Fall 2020.

•  Edit the Syllabus page in your Canvas course to reflect important course and instructor information.

Recommended timeframe: 4-5 weeks prior to start of term

Planning Content

•  Look at your face-to-face course content and think about how different activities will best translate into the online environment. For inspiration, take a look at what some of your colleagues are doing.
•  If needed, familiarize yourself with tools you can use to deliver lectures, record lectures, and share files online.

Adding Content to Canvas

Note: All learning activities and assessments must be built into your Canvas course site(s). We recommend having students submit all course work through Canvas Assignments, Discussions, or Quizzes.

•  Add a page to each Module in your course where you can post or link in lecture materials for that Module.
•  Add Canvas Discussions, Assignments, and/or Quizzes for all of the learning activities and assessments in your course, in the appropriate Module for each activity.
•  If desired, add “Module Overview” pages at the start of each Module to summarize and prepare students for the learning activities that they will engage with in each Module.

Recommended timeframe: 2-3 weeks prior to start of term

Note: All grading is required to be recorded in the Canvas Gradebook for Fall 2020.

•  If you’ll be weighting grades based on different categories, create new Assignment Groups, drag your learning activities into them, and add the appropriate weights to you new Groups.
•  Determine whether you want grades to be posted immediately upon input, or if you’d like to hide grades until you’re finished grading all submissions, and adjust Canvas settings accordingly.

Recommended timeframe: 1-2 weeks prior to start of term

Adding Instructor Presence

•  Record a welcome video for your course, and post it in a Canvas Discussion, Page, or Announcement.
•  Write a welcome email to send out to your students when your course starts, or a day or two beforehand.

Final Canvas Site Setup

•  Create a new Page for your course that will serve as the Home Page. Or, set your Modules page as the course Home Page, if desired.
•  Adjust your course settings so that Announcements show up on your course Home Page, if desired.
•  Schedule planned Announcements (i.e. due date reminders).
•  Adjust the options that appear in your course’s left-hand navigation menu.
•  Publish your course, all the Modules, and all of the content in each Module.