The Importance of Announcements

Using announcements in your Canvas courses is a great way to model and scaffold self-regulation among students. Announcements can be a tool for you to share important information, remind students about upcoming deadlines, and even celebrate the small (or big) successes within the learning community. Consider setting up weekly announcements to help students remember everything that is due on a particular week, and even provide links to key sections and/or materials they may need access to.

Sample Announcements

Feel free to use these announcements as inspiration for your course(s):

Tips For Writing Effective Announcements

Identify important/key information and only include that in your announcement. It is tempting to include more and more, but always ask yourself: What do they absolutely need to know and what would be "nice to know"?
Highlight critical sections you want to draw attention to. You can do this by bolding or highlighting the text.
- Accessibility Tip: If you decide to use color, always use a combination of color and another type of emphasis (e.g., bold or italics). Color alone will make it hard for screen readers and students with color blindness to differentiate the change in emphasis.
Include links to sections of the Canvas course and/or materials students will need on a particular week.
Set a tone. Let your instructor presence come through in your announcements. Write/record in a way that shows who you are and the type of communication you want to establish with students.
Keep it short and relevant. If students have to scroll down a lot to read through the announcement, it beats the purpose of having a communication that summarizes information.
Why just write? If you are feeling adventurous, consider including a video in your announcement, so that you can communicate information in a different way.

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