Copying in Canvas: Assignment, Module,Event, Assignment, From Commons

Scribe At Work

Recently, teachers have been asking about copying items within a Canvas Course. Duplicating quizzes, assignments, and modules helps improve teacher workflow. This week's Friday Five features ways to copy different items within a single course in Canvas. 

How to Copy....

1. A Quiz- Do you need to copy a quiz to make a differentiated version?  The steps found here explain how to copy a quiz within a course. The same process can be used for copying into another course, just make sure to start in the course you would like the quiz copy to be in. 

2. A Module- Perhaps you would like to duplicate a module structure or a complete module. You can duplicate a module (if it does not contain a quiz or LTI assignment) by simply clicking on (1) the three dots to the left of a module title and then selecting (2) Duplicate. Here are full directions.

3. A Calendar Event- Are you having a special event in your class over multiple days? Create the event once and then use the Duplicate feature (found under More Options) to repeat the event for a subsequent number of days. You can even have Canvas automatically number the events for you.Here are full directions. 

4. An Assignment or A Discussion- Just like we saw with Modules, you can easily duplicate an assignment or discussion by clicking on the three dots next to the assignment and then selecting duplicate.

5. A Resource from Commons-  If you have explored Commons in the past, you saw that to fully preview a resource, you had to import it into a shell class. To make this easier you can now preview items in Commons before you copy them into a course. Here are full directions on how to do this and below is an example of how you can preview an assignment that was shared. Curious about Commons? Here is information on what Commons is and describes how it can be used to share items to other teachers in Pennridge.

"Twitter-Style" Chat in Canvas and How to Make Modules More 😊

In our last edition, we saw how Discussions can be used to help students develop as Knowledge Constructors. This week highlights how one teacher is helping her students develop as Creative Communicators and Digital Citizens through Canvas Discussions.

Canvas Twitter-Style Chat

1. Melissa Osmun, reading teacher at Central Middle School, and her students have been participating in a "Twitter-Style" Chat using Canvas Discussions. (If you are unfamiliar with Twitter Chats, check out this comprehensive guide to Twitter created by a personal Twitter Favorite of mine- @cybraryman1)

Click on Image to see Larger- See Tweet here

2. Melissa's method: Melissa creates a Discussion for her class and then creates three replies to the Discussion. Each reply is a question. Students are then instructed to reply to two questions, giving students choice.

3. Benefits for the Students: While there are many benefits, adding online discussions to your tool kit provides an opportunity for  students to have time to process their ideas, makes their thinking visible to other students, and requires all students to be involved in the discussion. The online discussion feature is always a great way to give a voice to a student who may be more reserved in the whole class setting.

4. Benefits for the Teacher: Melissa can make sure that all students are involved in the Discussion and can provide specific feedback within the Discussion or through Speedgrader. Students responses are grouped together in Speedgrader which makes reviewing a snap for teachers.

And Now...just because it is fun and because I got the idea from Twitter,

5. Add Emoticons to your Module Titles to provide an element for visual discrimination and  🎉 fun 🎉. You can copy emojis from a ton of places including emojipedia.org and then place the graphic into your Module title. Destiny Beck, high school English teacher, added graphics to modules in her 9th grade English class.

Click On Image to See Larger

EdCamp Follow-Up

Friday Five- EdCamp Follow-Up

The high school's second EdCamp PD day was a great day of professional collaboration. This installment of the Friday Five is dedicated to highlighting and building upon some of the great conversation that occurred. 

1. Discussion Feature in Canvas:  As of my last count, 173 entries were made into the Discussion thread that was started on Canvas. This tool allowed people, who did not see each other during various sessions, to share insights and ideas with one another. It also created a valuable  resource for those who were not present Friday morning. Finally, it acts as a record of the day and continues to serve as a space for ongoing dialogue.  If you haven't used this tool in your classroom, give it a try. It is an effective way to further discussion on timely topics. Many people have asked me if it is difficult to grade a discussion. SpeedGrader groups a student's responses together. This offers an easy way to evaluate the number and quality of student responses. Below is a screenshot of what this looks like in SpeedGrader. Thanks Nicole Gordienko for allowing me to share your responses!

Check Out This Great Resource on creating valuable online discussions.


2. Google Integration:   Another FAQ was about how I embedded the EdCamp Grid  into a Canvas Page. While this has long been possible (click here for directions), the new Google LTI makes this process even simpler. If you are interested in having the new Live Beta (this means it is not perfect and is being tested broadly to fine tune) of the new LTI added to your course, email or see me. This will allow you to create cloud based assignments for students. Canvas and Google will make a copy of a Google Doc automatically for a student. The student can work on the assignment right in Canvas and then submit with a single click. Here is more info on this type of assignment. Thank you to Carol Ressler and Destiny Beck for piloting it with their classes!

3. PBL/Best Practices:  Many sessions got major kudos in the online discussion, but one in particular that received a lot of attention was Frank Flanagan and Lisa Russell's session on Project Based Learning. Frank created a Smore of resources for PBL. This session, and the resources shared,  couples nicely with the discussion facilitated by Deb Cotner-Davis and Ray Ott. As we finish out our second decade of the 21st century, we need to continue to find ways to make schools relevant for our student's futures. The ideas shared in these sessions help to do this.

Best practices/PBL Forum #phspd17 #edcampmodel @CzapHil @clg311 pic.twitter.com/rOhg0hO3fZ

— Pennridge HS (@PennridgeHS) February 17, 2017

4. Twitter for PD and PR:  There was a lively discussion of how Twitter can be used to further professional learning and to create a positive image of our school. Lisa Maderic offered a great suggestion of adding a reminder to your phone to send a Tweet once a week. Imagine if each teacher tweeted one positive example of the great things going on at PHS to @PennridgeHS and @pennridgesd! The more we share the wonderful things being done in our classes with the community, the more support we will receive.  Here is a blog post Scott Hegen created on the subject.

5.Technology and the Tactile:  Finally, I am so sorry I missed Eric Kehs and Matt Simkins' session that incorporated kinesthetic activities and tech tools. The supervisors are reporting an increased demand for shaving cream.  Everyone who attended had a great time and was reminded that technology is one of the many tools that can be used to create a meaningful and effective learning experience for students. Eric and Matt shared great examples and here is an article about some other effective strategies to get students moving in your classroom.

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Using Twitter to fight the Winter Blues!

Friday Five 12/9/16

With the rush of the holidays, the reality that arctic air will soon be visiting, and the excitement of the students over the coming break, it can be easy to get into a December funk. I was feeling this way as I was trying to plan this Friday Five. Instead of skipping this week, I decided to search for some inspiration!  

My go-to source for inspiration from edu-rock stars is Twitter. So I sent out the following Tweet:

On Fridays I send out 5 @CanvasLMS tips to my faculty. Need some new ones. Pls share your favorites here! #canvaschat

— Cara Gurysh (@clg311) December 8, 2016

Of course, there are dangers in venturing onto social media. Once you log-in you can quickly find yourself lost in a series of clicks and end up on some inane PopSugar article like this one. Fortunately, I use Twitter only as a Professional Learning Community, so I was safe!  

Low and behold...I got some advice…. I got some inspiration….I was reminded that great reward comes from connecting with inspiring educators from across the globe.

So thank you Twittersphere for helping me get back in the groove!  

Friday Five Tips and the Tweets that Inspired Them!

1. It is all about the Badges

.@MrsTMercer Badges can B awarded 4 many things. Module completion=most common. Ts could submit evidence (inc. Canvas course) #canvas4elem

— Jared Ward (@wardjhs) September 28, 2016

Gamification is a trend being implemented in and outside of the classroom. Those of you who completed the Canvas Beginners and Canvas Intermediate Courses were awarded badges. Consider adding Badges to your courses. Here is an overview article of how you can use badges. I am working on a PD course on how to build badges into your Canvas Courses. More information to follow!


2. You can earn a Microsoft Badge and Act 48!

A3: Microsoft offers free professional development over its products and awards badges for completion. #badgechatk12 pic.twitter.com/Jn4k3uXaa0

— Christopher Tucker (@ChrisTuckerEdu) November 21, 2016

Chris B. sent out an email last Friday alerting all faculty of this opportunity being offered for PSD Teachers. Here is what he wrote: “In order to help teachers satisfy their Act 48 requirements, an internet course through the Microsoft Education Community entitled “Microsoft in Education” has been posted to OTS.  This course reviews the basic operation of Office 365 and how it can be utilized in the classroom.  Following completion of this course 3 hours of Act 48 will be awarded.  Please use this link ,which directs you to the in district OTS system, if you are interested in this opportunity.”

3. More on Discussions!

@clg311 @CanvasLMS See you next week Cara! How about 'focused' vs 'threaded' discussions? https://t.co/qRlU2McCEZ

— Jonathan Kasica (@JonKas82) December 9, 2016

We have explored Discussions in the past. But what does “focused” vs “threaded” mean exactly? Focused discussions ask students to reflect upon a single idea. For example, “Who is to blame for Romeo and Juliet’s deaths?”.  A threaded discussion is used to explore more complex ideas that may naturally break into sub-topics. For example, if the question is “Was the South’s secession justified?”, the discussion could quickly become threaded based upon political, economic, or cultural distinctions. This threaded discussion could be revisited throughout the course of a unit, while the focused example may be used a single assignment.  


4. Video may have killed the radio star, but video enlivens learning!  

We've learned a few things about the use of video that can help you use it for maximum impact. Here are 3 tips: https://t.co/q5nMpmySHX pic.twitter.com/vxQh7yqYAZ

— Canvas LMS (@CanvasLMS) November 3, 2016

Embedding videos into your Canvas Course is easy thanks to the integration of YouTube and the ease to upload your own video creations! But there are some important things to keep in mind. Here are some great tips on incorporating video into your classes.


5. Fast Track Videos 

@clg311 @CanvasLMS Have you checked out the Canvas FastTrack Video Series? Great tips and ready to share right away. https://t.co/wdmfcuxg0W

— Andrew Gooch (@AndrewJGooch) December 8, 2016

Want to learn more about Canvas? Canvas has a series of videos designed to quickly give you key information or skills to utilize some of Canvas’ most popular features. We used a few in our training courses. The complete list of videos can be found here.

11.4.16 Grading Periods, Numbers to Brag About

Friday Five(ish)-

1. Working with Grading Periods: The attached and linked PDF has a list of 5 bits of info regarding switching between quarters in Canvas. Please check it out!
2. Data Worth Celebrating: We made it through the first quarter and everyone is working hard to learn how to implement Canvas in their classrooms. So, for the last 4 items I am including some amazing stats that demonstrate all of your hard work!

Since the start of the school year:

• 2,744 Assignments have been created in Canvas
• 1,285 Discussion topics have been created (note: this is not a year one goal!!!)
• 8,618 Files have been uploaded
• 110 Media recordings have been added to courses