Canva is an accessible graphic design tool designed to facilitate the creation of high-quality visual projects, including for social media, posters, documents, lesson plans, video conference backgrounds, and many more, all based on templates developed by experts. The platform provides users with access to a vast collection of over one million templates, tools, and resources useful for various types of design. Due to its intuitive „drag and drop” interface, Canva simplifies the creation process, making design accessible and easy for any user.
Between November 26 and December 2, 2022, a course entitled „Robotics and STEAM Education for Children with Special Needs and Inclusive Classrooms” took place in Avilés, Spain. This course was funded by the Erasmus+ program, Key Action 1 – School Education, under contract number 2022-1-RO01-KA121 SCH-000064315. It is part of the accredited project „Connecting, we grow!”, which aims to develop competencies in applying STEAM principles and methods in educational activities for students with special needs. The course was disseminated at the Special Vocational School „St. Nicholas” through a series of workshops designed to support educators in understanding the benefits of digital applications in teaching, assessment, and learning.
During these workshops, which we attended, the use of the Canva platform was also presented.
Canva is a versatile graphic design platform accessible to both professionals and individuals without design experience. The process of use is straightforward: users select a template, customize the text and images, and then download the finalized design in the desired format. The platform offers an integrated library of templates and a set of tools that facilitate the creation of visually appealing models. Due to its flexibility, Canva can be utilized by a wide range of individuals, from students and individual users to organizations of any size.
Canva is a valuable tool in the field of education, facilitating the creation of visually appealing projects that help students grasp fundamental concepts of digital design. Educators can utilize the platform to develop teaching materials such as guides, posters, and other visual resources, beneficial for both classroom activities and online learning. Canva integrates effectively with Google Classroom, becoming a valuable complementary tool for users of this educational platform. Accessing Canva’s resources requires registration, which can be done via email, Google account, or Facebook. After creating a free account, users can specify whether they are students, teachers, or hold other roles, thereby configuring a personalized experience. The platform is available free of charge through Canva for Education accounts, facilitating access for all those involved in education.
Canva provides a variety of virtual templates, allowing users to customize their designs without additional effort related to familiarizing themselves with the platform. This enables them to focus on the content of the material, optimizing the time and energy allocated. Editing in Canva is intuitive, with a user-friendly navigation menu, and templates are directly visible on the homepage. Users can organize their work into custom folders and rename templates for quick identification. By using the „Create a design” option, displayed on a blue button in the upper right corner, users can access the full range of available templates. Within a selected template, the menu bar on the left allows for the addition of various elements. Canva automatically saves all changes made during editing, and the final design can be downloaded in various formats, converted into a PowerPoint file, shared on social media, or printed, according to the user’s needs.
Canva offers a vast collection of professionally designed free templates that can be quickly customized due to its „drag and drop” interface. The template categories cover a diverse range of needs, including posters, video conference backgrounds, lesson plans, book covers, photo collages, invoices, business cards, social media posts, menus, letterheads, infographics, and many others. These templates enable the creation of visually impactful materials for presentations, posters, or images. Canva also provides advanced tools, such as graphic templates, which are particularly useful in the educational field for mathematics and science courses, aiding in the visual presentation of results in a clear and engaging manner.
Among the designs that can be created in Canva are social media posts and stories, videos, greeting cards, infographics, menus, collages, flyers, business cards, brochures, book covers, event invitations, and presentations. Canva offers numerous other design options that can be adapted based on the field of activity and specific needs, and its use is simple and intuitive. The platform also provides free tutorials detailing how to use the tool and ways to integrate it into the online educational environment. The „Design School” within Canva includes a series of free video courses covering a variety of topics, including the course „Introduction to Canva,” which provides an overview of the platform, and
Canva offers an intuitive and user-friendly interface, enabling users to create impressive designs quickly and efficiently. Its extensive features contribute to optimal functionality, while the friendly design of the interface ensures a smooth user experience, allowing for the completion of desired projects in a very short time.
Using the features of the Canva platform, I developed an educational STEAM game inspired by „Let’s Go Code,” which is utilized in the elective course „Robots Tell Stories.” This game aims to facilitate the learning of early logic and coding concepts by children without the need for a computer, while also stimulating interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Throughout the game, children will engage in activities such as jumping, stepping, turning, and rotating, all while developing their problem-solving skills. This gradual approach constitutes an effective method for helping children understand the fundamentals of coding.
The game can be approached in several ways. The first option is a cooperative approach, where one player navigates through the maze while the other provides commands based on the images on the game cards. The objective is to reach the end of the maze, marked by a small robot. A more complex version of the game may include cards featuring objects (such as wheels, springs, and X’s) and cards indicating various actions (such as a claw and a flying backpack), each with a specific meaning. Another way to play is in teams: two groups are formed, one of which traverses the maze while the other offers commands based on the coding cards.
The tokens created in the Canva platform include: mat-like pieces in four colors—pink, orange, blue, and green; cards featuring coding elements; two pieces with robots; two pieces with wheels; two arrows; and two X-shaped pieces.
The game significantly contributes to the development of critical thinking, problem-solving skills, sequential thinking, as well as promoting teamwork and cooperation. The kinesthetic activities encourage the development of motor skills, orientation, and balance. Additionally, the game familiarizes children with the concept of a maze and the fundamental notions of logic and coding. The activated learning styles are visual, kinesthetic, and tactile, which enhances the educational experience.
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Authors:
Narcisa Soare, profesor psihopedagog
Valentina Mănescu, profesor psihopedagogie specială
Școala Profesională Specială „Sf. Nicolae” , București