CanvasPlayFor teachers
Give your class their own topic list, put today's idea up on the board, and borrow a lesson idea or two. Nothing to install, and nobody has to sign up.
Get a class code
Type in what your class is studying and get a short code. Students type the code on the home page (or open the link), and the topic picker only gives them your topics. There's nothing for them to set up.
Or add a whole subject from our list:
Your list and your code are kept on this computer, so they'll still be here next time. Only this browser can update the code.
your class code
Press the button and you get a short code like tiger-42 to write on the board.
You changed the list. Press Update so students get the new one.
Write the code on the board. Students go to play.canvastoframes.com and type it in, or you paste the link into your class group, Google Classroom or an email. On shared tablets, open it once on each one and it remembers your list.
This browser is using the list for , because a class link was opened here.
Today's idea
Everyone gets the same idea today, on every device.
So a whole class, or kids drawing at home, can compare what they made. It changes at midnight. The big-screen view has a 5, 10 or 15 minute timer you can run on the board. Press Esc to close it.
Ways to use it in class
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Morning warm-up 5 min
Put the 60-second sketch on the board. Do three rounds, a new idea each time. After every round, everyone holds their paper up. No "best one", just a quick look and a laugh.
Open the 60-second sketch -
End of a science unit 15 min
Put the unit's words into a class code (photosynthesis, food chains, the water cycle...). Each student spins once and draws that topic with three labels. You'll see very quickly who got it.
Get a class code -
Pairs: say it, don't show it 10 min
Partner A spins an idea and keeps the screen to themselves. They describe it without saying the main word, and partner B draws. Then swap. Good for speaking and for listening.
Open the idea spinner -
Gallery walk, three colors only 20 min
Pick one 3-color challenge and write the colors on the board so everyone has the same set. Ten minutes to draw, then leave the work on desks and walk around. Each student leaves one sticky note on a drawing that isn't theirs.
Open the 3-color challenge -
Brain break after a test 3 min
Put the memory game on the big screen and play it together: the class calls out the words they remember, you tap. Loud, short, and everyone is back in their seats after.
Open the memory game also good on a rainy-day lunch break -
For early finishers any time
Leave finish-the-squiggle open on a spare tablet. They get a random line and turn it into something. It needs no explaining, which is the point.
Open finish-the-squiggle
Good to know
Do students need accounts or an email?
No. There are no accounts, no logins and no names asked for anywhere. They open the page and start.
Where does our data go?
Your class name and topic list are kept on the CanvasPlay server under your class code, so students can open them. That's all: no student names, no accounts. Drawings are saved only in the browser on each device and never leave it. Clearing the browser's data clears saved drawings too.
I'm on a different computer and can't update my code.
A code can only be changed from the browser that made it. Make a new code with your list, and give the class the new one. The old code keeps working with the old list.
Will it work on our devices?
It works in any up-to-date browser: tablets, phones, Chromebooks, laptops and the board computer. Finger, stylus or mouse all work for drawing.
Can I print things?
Yes. Pages print without the site menus. This page prints as a short lesson plan with today's idea on it, and the buttons are left off.
How does a student save a drawing?
On the drawing pad, tap Save. The picture downloads as an image file, which on most tablets ends up in Downloads or Photos. From there they can print it or hand it in like any other file.
I opened my own link and now I only see my topics.
That's expected: opening a class link switches that browser to the list. Use "Switch back to the normal topics" in the class code section above, which shows up whenever a class list is in use on this device.