Creating Your Course Menu

Overview Four Steps to Creating a Course

Menu Plan your Links

Add the Tools

Create the Content Areas

Organize the Links

Keep It Simple Possible Starting Points

If you want to provide… Add…

One click access to an often utilized tool, such as Discussions or Calendar

A tool link to the specific tool

Lecture notes or other reading materials

One or more content areas to organize the material

A link to a regularly used web site

An External Link

Edit Mode

Adding Tools to the Course Menu

Fast Steps

•In Edit Mode, click the Plus Sign (Create Item Icon)

•Select Create Tool Link

Adding Tools to the Course Menu

•Enter the name for the Link

•From the Type drop down list, select the tool to add

•Select whether the tool will be available to users

•Click Submit

Hands-on ActivityAdd Tools to Your

Course

Create Content Areas

Four Sub-StepsDetermine how Content Areas

will be organizedAdd the Content AreasAdd items and tools to the

Content AreasEdit the items in the Content

Areas

Organization of Content AreaThree approaches

Chronologically

By Content Type

By Subject Area

Chronologically

•In this approach, each Content Area contains a week’s worth or a chapter’s worth of material

Type of Content Related types of content are

grouped together in a Content Area

Course Menu Content Area

Begin Class Here Syllabus, Course Outline, Course Policies, Introduce Yourself Discussion Board

Course Lectures Intro Lecture, Chapter 1 Lecture, Chapters 2,3, and 4 Lecture

Course Assignments Assignment 1, Assignment 2, Lab Report 1

Subject Area Each Content Area contains

materials on a particular subject.

Course Menu Content Area

Begin Class Here

Syllabus, Course Outline, Course Policies, Introduce Yourself Discussion Board

Solar Energy Lecture, Assignment, Chat, Quiz

Wind Energy Lecture, Assignment, Discussion, Survey

Add The Content Area

Steps•In the Edit Mode, click the Plus sign above the Course Menu

•Select Create Content Area

Add The Content Area

•Enter a Name for the link•Select whether it will be available to users•Click Submit

Hands-on ActivityAdd Content Areas

Plan Your Content Area Consider how you will organize your course

Add Content Areas Create two or three Content Areas Title one of them Begin Class Here

View Content Areas Note the Content Areas you created. Because the

Content Areas created have no content in them, there is an icon of a dotted square.

Access the Begin Class Here area and note that it is empty.

Return to the Homepage using the breadcrumbs.

Add Items/Tools to Content Area

The following are examples of items that can be added to a Content Area: Items that contain files, text, images Individual Tool links Folders Tests and surveys Assignments External Links Course Links Module Pages

To Add an Item Use the “Create

Item” button on the Action Bar.

Add other materials using the “Build”, “Evaluate”, and “Collaborate” buttons

Adding Items and Tools

If You Want to Add: Click

Folder, External Link, Course Link, Learning Module, Syllabus, Module Page, Link to a Tool

Build

Test, Survey, Assignment, Self or Peer Assignment

Evaluate

Discussion Board Link, Blog Link, Journal, Chat, Virtual Classroom Link, Group Link

Collaborate

Adding an Item In Edit Mode, access the Content Area

from the Course Menu On the Action Bar, click Create Item On the Add Item Page, enter the

Item’s Name and text To add a file, click Browse and locate

the file. To add multiple files, use the Text Editor’s Attach File function

Under Options, click Yes to make the item available to students

Click Submit

Adding a Tool to the Content Area

In Edit, access the Content Area. From the Build Menu, select Link to

Tools Area On the Link to Tools page, select the

tool and click Next On the Add Link Page enter a link

name or leave the default name In the Text box, enter the text to

appear under the Link Name Under Options, select availability Click Submit

Adding Tools

Adding Tools

Hands-on ActivityAdding Materials to Begin

Class Add an Item titled About This

Course Use the Build Menu to Create

Syllabus Select the option to Create New Syllabus

Add a link to the Discussion Board

Add an External Link Turn Edit Mode to OFF to preview

your course as a Student

Editing the Items in a Content Area

After items are added to a Content Area, you may edit the following:

The Item’s Name

The Item’s Availability

The Order of the Items

Editing an Item

In Edit Mode, in the Content Area, click the Item’s Action Link

Select Edit Edit the item’s

name and/or availability

Changing the Order of Items

In Edit Mode, press the “Move” icon next to the item. The item is highlighted.

Drag the item into the new location in the Content Area.

Hands-on ActivityOrganizing Content Items Change the order of the links in

the Course Menu by using the drop and drag function.

Change the name of one of the Links. (Please do not change the name of the Tools Link)

Make one of the links unavailable to students

Turn Edit Mode OFF to view as a student.

Congratulations!!

You are well on your way to creating an engaging course for your students!