One of the best ways for you to guide your students' learning is by facilitating their learning experience via Canvas Modules.

Click on the tabs to find out how to design and organize modules.

Why Modules

Modules allow you to organize various components of your course to systematically guide your students to complete the stated learning objectives.

Each module may contain pages, files, images, discussions, assignments, quizzes, and other learning materials and activities.

Modules help you to do the following:

organize your course (e.g., by your learning objectives) for students to easily navigate through the course to achieve the objectives;
create requirements and prerequisites that students must complete before moving on in the course
track student progress through a sequence of learning activities.

Layouts: Download the course design layout or the module design layout (discussed on the next page) to get started.

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Name Modules

After you have downloaded the course design layout or the module design layout (discussed on the next page), do the following:

Name the modules based on the course objectives (i.e., use an abbreviated verb-noun form of your course objective).
- Review the first column in this course planning worksheet example
- Based on the second course objective (on page 2 of the worksheet), you could name the module Develop Assessments. Notice the name of the modules in Figure 1 below.
  
  Figure 1. Sample Names of Modules

When the modules are named according to the course objective, it is easier to facilitate learning in the course regardless of the number of weeks required. You would simply need to adjust the due date for the learning activities for each module based on the available number of weeks.

Add Modules From Scratch: If you need to start from scratch to add and name your modules (instead of using either of the layouts), you may also use these instructions.

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Add Content Buckets

After you have added your module, you will need to add content buckets to the module. These buckets are needed for you to later add content in a logical manner for your learners to easily progress through the module. The purpose of the bucket are to help you: (1) gain your learner's attention; provide (2) learning objectives, (3) learning content and guidance, and opportunities to (4) practice and (5) apply what they learned. The name of these buckets were informed by a well-established framework: Gagne's nine events of instruction.

Use consistent names across modules for the six aforementioned buckets. For example:

Notice the name of the module buckets in the third column of the Module Organization Worksheet Example
Notice the consistent naming of the module buckets across the modules in this course design challenge (see example below).

For each of the buckets, you will also need to decide what Canvas element you will use for each. Notice that the first column in the Module Organization Worksheet Example indicates the Canvas module bucket that was used. For example:

Gain Learners Attention - Use Pages
Inform Learner of the Learning Objectives - Use Pages
Provide Learning Guidance - Use Pages
Provide Additional Learning Guidance - Use Pages
Provide Opportunities to Practice - Pages, was used in the example. However, depending on your objective you may use a different component (e.g., discussion, quizzes, or assignment).
Assess Learning - Discussion forum was used in the example. However, depending on your objective you may use a different component (e.g., discussion, quizzes, or assignment).

To add the different module buckets (e.g., pages, assignments, discussions, and quizzes), follow these instructions

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Add Content

To Add content to your module buckets (e.g., pages, assignments, discussions, and quizzes), you will need to use the rich content editor.

Each of the aforementioned buckets includes a rich content editor that you may use to modify your content. You may access the rich content editor by clicking edit (in the top right corner of your module item).

Canvas edit button
The rich content editor may be accessed by clicking edit after you have selected any the module buckets that you added.

Image of Rich Content Editor:

Canvas rich content editor

Review additional instructions: How do I add and modify text in the rich content editor?

Worksheets: If you need ideas for what to add in each module bucket, review the following.

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More Resources

At times it may be necessary to add prerequisites or requirements for your modules. To find out more, review the following instructions.

Additional Resources:

Useful links for Creating Modules

Canvas Instructor Guides

Module Design Checklist

Decide to guide your student’s learning systematically using modules.
Get a Canvas course development shell here or here (if needed)
Download the course design or module design layout via Canvas Common into your course shell or course. View Instructions to use Canvas Commons here. Search for Firm Faith
Complete the module organization worksheet (optional).
Name your modules (This is done in the process of adding a module).
Add Module buckets (named consistently across modules)
Add Module Content via the rich content editor