How to use Canva

Let graphic design be part of your lessons!

Canva is a graphic design tool for the web, Android and iOS. Users can create an account (with an email address or by linking their Google or Facebook account) and then follow a tutorial, which explains how to get started and how to use the tool's many features.

Users can upload their own images and create their own layouts or

choose from a selection of thousands of built-in images and design templates (some of which are available for in-app purchase).

Once users have finished creating, their designs are automatically saved to the cloud and are accessible from the user's home page in the app or on the website. Users can then export their creations via email, as Facebook posts, or via Twitter, and they can download their images in JPEG, PNG, or PDF format.

Some users' opinions

According to Timothy Shim (2019), "Canva is very easy to use, even easier than Microsoft Paint."
In her spanish publication, Lorena Molinero Martin (2017) explains: "pues bien, si te soy sincera, si hubiera existido Canva en aquel entonces, no me habría complicado tanto la vida. Y con complicarme la vida no quiero decir que los otros programas sean malos, sino más bien que requieren de mucho más trabajo."

Canva is a great creation tool for class projects: learners can use the available templates to create their own stunning class presentations. There are great graph templates built in, too, which could be great tools to help learners display data.

Teachers can also profit from the use of these design tools to create visually attractive course documents or class websites. I recommend you to check out Canva's teaching materials for more inspiration!

Pros and cons of using Canva 

Advantages

• Multiple options to customize your work. 
• Plethora of font and colour choices.
• Users can size their photos to very specific dimensions.
• User-friendly platform
• When you’re done with your project, you can easily share it via email (even in editing mode if you want other people to collaborate); download it as a PDF, JPG, or PNG file; and distribute it on social media with integrated share buttons. 

Drawbacks

• You need internet connection all the time. 
• There are no capabilities for videos embeds, animated features, or live-data integrations, which means you’re pretty much limited to creating static graphics.

So, how can you start?

• First of all, create an account on Canva's website or mobile app.

• Follow the instructions for the tutorial (it doesn't take too much time)

• Choose any template and start editing it: you can change the images, the fonts, the background or the colours by clicking on the left menu. You can also add picture or stickers. 

Finally, download your picture in the format you prefer by clicking the botton at the top of the page. 

In the following link you'll find an example of how to include Canva in a lesson plan for your students. https://julietademarcoictple.blogspot.com/2019/05/a-lesson-plan-with-canva.html

Hope you find this useful! Write a comment below about your experience with this great tool once you have used it with your students :)

Sources
Crea increíbles diseños en equipo totalmente gratis. (n.d.). Retrieved May 10, 2019, from https://www.canva.com/

Martin, L. M. (2017, June 15). CANVA – Opiniones, Comentarios y Tutorial (una Alternativa fácil a Photoshop). Retrieved May 10, 2019, from https://siemprendes.com/canva-opiniones-comentarios-tutorial/

Shim, T. (2019, January 2). Canva Review. Retrieved May 10, 2019, from https://www.buildthis.io/review/canva-review/

Smart ways to use Canva, for the 21st century teacher. (n.d.). Retrieved May 10, 2019, from https://www.canva.com/learn/teachers/

Teacher resources - Learn. (n.d.). Retrieved May 10, 2019, from https://www.canva.com/learn/teacher-resources/

Teaching strategies. (n.d.). Retrieved May 10, 2019, from https://www.canva.com/learn/teachers/?s=teaching-strategies§ion=5b235e43cc61f