Navigating a Canvas Course

After you click from the Dashboard into a specific course, you see the Course Page. This page will introduce you to the main components of a Course Page and explain the purpose of each element.

There are five main sections in a Canvas course:

Course Navigation
Global Navigation
Breadcrumb Navigation
Sidebar
Help Corner

Course Navigation

Canvas classifies the materials and activities you add to your course into types, and this navigation shows you all the course elements of a certain type. For example, clicking on "Assignments" will show you every assignment in your course, no matter where it fits in your course sequence. Clicking on "Files" lets you look at all the files that have been uploaded into this course space, irrespective of which page they are designed to appear on.

Global Navigation

global nav.png

Global Navigation works the same on every page in Canvas. It helps you move between your different courses in Canvas.

Breadcrumb Navigation

The Breadcrumbs appear above the main body of the page. Breadcrumbs leave a trail that help you see where you have navigated to inside a Canvas course. Follow these links backward to visit the parent pages of the one you're on. Click on the house icon at the far left of the Breadcrumbs to move all the way back to the Dashboard.

The Sidebar

The Sidebar functions differently on the Course screen than it does when you see it on the Dashboard. In Courses, it changes to show relevant options and tools to help you with the task you're working on.

The Help Corner

The Help Corner is where you will find the ever-helpful Help Button. The Help Button connects you to Canvas' built in help materials and is the first place you should look for help in Canvas. We'll discuss it in more depth later.

The Help Corner also has links to your personal profile and communications inbox, as well as a link to log out of Canvas.

the help corner.jpg

Hands-On: Get to Know the Dashboard and Course Screens

Before you take the quiz on the next page, take a moment to click around these two screens and become familiar with the...

Dashboard page
Sidebar
Global Activity Stream
Global Navigation