Back-to-school tips for Canva

Canva is a creative studio that helps you design whatever you can dream up, but it can also be your handy productivity partner. Whether you’re a student or teacher, these tips and tricks can help you make the most of Canva and ace this school year.

Make brainstorming fun, organized, and visually engaging using Whiteboards. On the Home tab, search for “whiteboard” to get started. Choose a blank one to start from scratch, or pick a template like “Creative Mind Map” or “Workflow Diagram” to kick things off with some building blocks.

From here, you can tap and drag elements on your whiteboard to move them closer to related ideas, or add and delete blocks and arrows as needed. You can even tap the draw tool on the toolbar to scribble freely. To invite other classmates or teachers to collaborate on your whiteboard, just tap the share icon on the upper-right corner to invite them via email or shareable link.

Beyond A+ presentations and graphics, you can also build your own digital or printable planner. Just type in “planner” on the Home search bar and pick a template that best matches your aesthetic and organization style.

Choose from weekly journals or yearly planners to help you plot out your goals for this school year. Some templates even have mood trackers and budget planners to help you stay on track beyond school. Make it your own by filling in your to-do lists and thoughts with text boxes, scribbling on pages with the draw tool, or even adding your own photos by tapping “Uploads” in the toolbar.

Have a big presentation coming up? Use your phone as a remote when presenting as long as you’re logged into the same Canva account on both devices. Just select your presentation and tap “Present” on your tablet or laptop. Once you’re in presentation mode, tap the menu in the bottom-right corner of the screen and tap “share remote control.”

This generates a QR code you can scan on your phone to take you to Canva’s Remote mode. From there, you can move between slides by tapping the arrows. You can even use Magic Shortcuts to add video effects while presenting, like a drum roll before a big reveal or a shushing GIF to tell the class to simmer down.

Schoolwork is more fun when you have the tools you need to succeed. With loads of great features that help you conceptualize, organize, and present better, Canva can help you make this school year even better than the last.