Overview:  When a “Welcome to my Course” video is the first thing the students see upon entering your course, it creates a positive first impression, builds rapport and establishes credibility.  Even better, from start to finish, creating a welcome video takes less than an hour!

Where to begin: Some Instructors use a short (2-4 slides) presentation, some simply talk into the camera.  Either way, it’s a good idea to outline what you’ll say.  Commonly used talking points include: 1) Brief Course Overview, 2) Where to find things in your Canvas course, 3) Grading and Attendance policies, 4) “About Me” with short bio.

Task Overview: You will need to enable Panopto in your Canvas Course, install the Panopto application to your computer, create your recording, upload it to Canvas and place it on your home page.  (To view the complete listing of available Panopto tutorials, click here).

Here’s how to do it:

Enabling Panopto in your Course Menu

1. Log in to Canvas and select the desired course.
2. Go to Settings at the bottom of the left navigation menu.
3. In the Settings area, click the Navigation tab
4. Click the cog next to the Panopto Recordings item and select Enable. This will add it to the Course Navigation menu.
5. Click Save at the bottom of the page.

Downloading and Installing the Panopto Recorder Application

1. Click on Panopto Recordings in the left navigation menu.
2. On the Panopto Recordings page, click on the Create button.
3. Next, select Record a new session. 
4. If you don’t already have Panopto installed on your machine, you’ll click on the appropriate download button for your computer type and follow the instructions to install the Panopto application on your machine.
5. Once Panopto is installed, it may open automatically.  If not, go back to the Panopto section in Canvas and click the blue Create button.

Using the Panopto Recorder to Create Your Video

1. This time click Record a new session and select Launch Panopto.
2. Now that you have the Panopto Recorder application open, you’re ready to record your video!  You’ll need to make sure that your audio and video sources are correct.  You’ll see yourself in the camera display and see the audio meter moving when you’ve selected the correct sources.
3. When you’re ready to record, press the red record button.  When you’ve finished recording, press the stop button.
4. Once the recording is complete, you’ll select the upload button to send the recording to the server.  It will become automatically viewable in Canvas.
5. After a few minutes, you’ll see your video in the Panopto Recordings section of Canvas.

Add your Welcome Video to Your Course Home Page

1. If you’ve already created a Home page, go to step 3.  If not, you’ll need to create a Home page for your course.
2. Click Home at the top of the navigation menu in Canvas.  Click Set Course Home Page on the right side of the screen. Select the Coure Syllabus or your Course Front Page. 
3. Go to the Home page and click the Edit button to edit the page.
4. Now that your home page is open and ready to edit, you may embed your Welcome Video.  To do this, select the v-shaped More External Tools icon.  Click Panopto Recordings and select the desired recording.  It will then be embedded in your page.  Click Save.  Congratulations!

Please let us know if you have questions or need assistance at: support@stedwards.edu.