Hi @jparker ! The Canvas message system is one that definitely takes some getting used to, especially depending on what system you were using before Canvas. My school just switched from D2L this year, and D2L relied on email for communication. Canvas is very different: instead of having access to email addresses, you have the Canvas inbox and message system which is where you send and receive messages, and your students do the same.
In my experience getting started with Canvas this year, it is really important to let your students know how you will be using Canvas Inbox/Messages and how you will be using email if you will be using a mix of both (I use a mix of both).
It's also really important to let your students know how to set up their notifications so that if they want email or other notifications of messages in their Inbox, they can get that, along with all kinds of other message settings. Here are the tips I give my students about Canvas based on what's important to my classes; you'll figure out which things you need to explain to students based on how your classes work:
Online Course Wiki / techtips
Have you seen the Canvas Guides section here?
Canvas Guides
The inbox and messaging system is under Conversations there; this might be a good place to start:
What is Conversations?
And definitely bring questions here to the Community. I'm new to Canvas, but there are other people here who are total experts. It's a great place to share and learn! 🙂
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