This is a guest post by one of our blog writers, Sarah Joncas
Canva is a useful image creation tool for teachers. While it is pretty straightforward, there are some common questions that come up about using Canva for the classroom.
Is Canva free?
Anyone can use a basic version of Canva for free, and a Pro version is available for a cost.
Most of the Pro features are now available to teachers and students for free through Canva for Education. Up to 30 students can be invited to Canva, and there are some education specific features like class folders. Canva has over 2 million images and 20,000 templates are available for Canva for Education users, giving you many possibilities to create any image you can imagine.
Can children under 13 use Canva?
According to Canva’s education site, yes. “Canva can be used by children of any age. Children under the age of 13 should be directly supervised by a parent, guardian or another authorized adult (such as a teacher) who agrees to be bound by our Terms of Use.” As with any technology, always check your local laws and school guidelines to be sure.
What can I use Canva for?
Anything visual you want to make, you can create with Canva. From social media posts to printable newsletters, there are millions of possibilities. Canva’s teacher page has some ideas to get you started. I’ve also found the templates page to be a great source of inspiration.
In my own teaching, I’ve used Canva for social media posts, concert programs, and classroom newsletters. Here’s a peek at each:
Social media post promoting a concert
Concert program
Class newsletter
Can you collaborate in Canva?
Yes! Canva is great for collaboration. It’s easy to share designs, and give access to allow other users to edit or view. Students can work together on a single project, or one teacher can start a concert program and invite another teacher to contribute.
Why should I use templates in Canva?
Templates make designing great-looking visuals so easy! While Canva allows you to start with a blank slate, the templates are a great time-saver to simplify creating a visual. Starting with a template doesn’t mean you can’t make changes; virtually every element of a template is adjustable to fit your needs. For example, in the concert program above I changed the fonts to suit my needs, and adjusted the font sizes to fit more text.
How can I learn to use Canva?
Canva is definitely something you can just jump into and try out, but some people might prefer a more structured approach. Canva offers design school, which offers courses and tutorials for using Canva. There are also lots of resources in the Canva support hub, which includes a robust search feature to allow you to get any Canva question answered. Canva even has a YouTube Channel with tips and tutorials. If you want a quick tutorial before you jump right in, check out Canva’s Quick Start Guide. Very soon a new step-by-step Canva course will be offered by Midnight Music, especially for educators – more information is below.
Can I use Canva on-the-go?
Yes, there’s an app for that! The Canva app is available for both iOS and Android so you can make images with your phone or tablet. A desktop version is also in the works, which opens up the possibility of using Canva without internet connectivity.
Conclusion
Canva is a great image creation tool for teachers. These FAQs should help you get started with Canva, or continue using this tool for your classroom.
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About the Writer
Sarah Joncas is a music teacher from Massachusetts, USA. She teaches kindergarten through fifth grade general music, fifth grade chorus, fifth grade band, and percussion ensemble. Before becoming a teacher, she worked with technology and educational software.In 2014, she was named a TI:ME Technology in Music Education Leadership Fellow, which allowed her to attend a music education conference in Texas and explore cutting edge music teaching technology. She has earned degrees in Music Education from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and Boston University. You can connect with Sarah on Twitter or her blog Teaching Music Musings.
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