Canvas: Opening and Navigating the DesignPlus Sidebar

The DesignPlus sidebar is a design tool which includes a list of new design elements that can be added to Canvas pages. This article will show how to open the DesignPlus Sidebar, and how to navigate each of the main tabs in the sidebar and what their basic functions are.

Opening the DesignPlus Sidebar

  1. Open a page or an assignment in Canvas that you want to edit.
  2. Click Edit near the top of your Canvas page. 
  3. Make sure your cursor is active inside the Canvas text editor box by clicking anywhere. Press option+shift+D on a Mac computer or alt+shift+D on a Windows computer.  
  4. The DesignPlus sidebar will open to the right of the text editor box. 

If you would like the sidebar button to show when editing or open automatically:

  1. Follow the previous instructions to open the sidebar.
  2. Click the More options tab (looks like 3 dots stacked on top of each other).
  3. Click User Settings.
  4. In the "Launch Sidebar" section, you may select either Automatically Launch Sidebar or Show Launch Button based on your preference. 
  5. If you select Automatically Launch Sidebar, then the next time you select Edit in a Canvas page, the DesignPlus sidebar will automatically open. 
  6. If you select Show Launch Button, then the next time you select Edit in a Canvas page, it will show you a rocket shaped button at the top of your page, to the right of the page title, which you can click on to open up the DesignPlus sidebar. 

Sidebar Navigation

Edit Current Elements

DesignPlus sidebar with the "Edit Current Elements" tab, which looks like a target, selected.

The first tab on the DesignPlus sidebar navigation pane is the "Edit Current Elements" tab, which has an icon that looks like a target. It shows what elements are on the page you are editing and you can click on any of the elements to see options to change and edit each one.

Add New Elements

DesignPlus sidebar navigation with the "Add New Elements" tab, which looks like a plus symbol, selected.

The second tab in the navigation pane is the "Add New Elements" tab, which has a plus-symbol icon. When you select this tab all page tools, content options, layout, interactive elements, and more. 

Accessibility and Usability

DesignPlus navigation sidebar with the "Accessibility and Usability" tab, which looks like a person inside of a circle, selected.

The third tab, which has an icon of a person inside of a circle, includes a useful "Accessibility" tool that has been built based on the latest digital accessibility requirements. It will spot check some basic accessibility issues on each page and provide guidance on how to fix them. 

Help

DesignPlus navigation sidebar with the "Help" tab, which looks like a question mark inside of a circle, selected.

The fourth tab is the "Help" tab, which has an icon of a question mark inside a circle. This lists resources for more information or training on how to use the DesignPlus tools. 

More Options

More Options menu, which looks like three dots stacked, in the DesignPlus Sidebar navigation.

In the "More Options" menu, on the end of the tabs, which has a Kebab-style menu (three dots stacked on top of each other), you can select any of the following options: 

  • Arrange Content 
    • Allows you to select different sections of the page and rearrange the order of the elements within them.
  • Preview Content
    • Allows you to view the edits you have made without leaving the editor.
  • Language Accents
    • Provides accents for letters and symbols for different languages.
  • User Settings
    • Allows you to change settings for the DesignPlus sidebar like enabling advanced tools or automatically launching the sidebar. 

Keywords:
DesignPlus, Canvas, Canvas pages 
Doc ID:
156445
Owned by:
Cecelia R. in School of Information Sciences
Created:
2025-10-30
Updated:
2026-05-28
Sites:
University of Illinois School of Information Sciences