Written by Katrina Proctor, Content Manager at Midnight Music.
As a music teacher, you are busy enough without the added stress of figuring out how to create a website to promote your concerts and events. But what if there was a way to create a free one-page website quickly and easily? That’s where Canva comes in!
Canva is a graphic design platform that allows you to create all sorts of designs, including one-page websites (and it’s completely free for teachers!). If you’re a Canva novice, I highly recommend Midnight Music’s Create Beautiful Teaching Resources with Canva Course, where you’ll learn everything from basic Canva tips to advanced design ideas.
In this blog post, we will show you step-by-step how to create a stunning website using Canva for all of your music events.
10 Canva Websites to Create For Your Music Classroom
In the age of technology, it’s easier than ever to make sure everyone is always getting the correct information, papers don’t get lost, and edits can be made anytime (even after a page is published).
Here are ten ideas for how to use Canva websites in your music classroom:
- Music Department Fundraisers
- Music Instrument Rental Nights
- New Instrument Starter Guides for Parents & Students
- Music Department Handbook
- Digital Concert Program
- Music Lessons & Camp Opportunities
- Private Lesson Sign-Ups
- Audition Information
- Student Practice Resources
- Musical or Show Information and Promotion
How to Create a Canva Website
Step 1: Sign up for a Free Canva Educator Account
The first thing you need to do is sign up for a free Canva educator account. Canva for Education is a free account for teachers that gives you access to various design tools and features.
Step 2: Select ‘Website’ from the Canva Toolbar
After logging in to your Canva account, select ‘Create a Design’ from the toolbar and select ‘Website.’
Step 3: Choose a Design Using Templates
Canva offers a variety of one-page website templates, so you can choose one that fits your event’s style and theme. There are templates for concerts, fundraisers, shows, and more! Browse the options and choose the one that best fits your event.
Step 4: Add More Pages and Add-In All of Your Information
Canva websites work in ‘pages.’ If you want to add a new section, you’ll select a new template and add it to your website. This will add it to the bottom of your existing website page. Everything will appear in a scrollable format, so you don’t need to worry about other links.
Once you have selected your design and added all the sections you need, it’s time to add all your event’s information. This might include the date, time, location, behind-the-scenes information, frequently asked questions, contact information, and other pertinent details. Make sure to double-check for accuracy before moving on to the next step.
Step 5: Add Design Elements, Pictures, and Edit Fonts
Now it’s time to make your website stand out! Add in design elements and clipart from the Canva library, upload pictures of previous events or your music students (always check your district’s student privacy policy), and edit the fonts to match the style of your event. You can even use photos from Canva’s extensive library – all for free!
Here is an example of part of a sample website I built for a music department’s cookie dough fundraiser. This is what 3 pages look like together:
Step 6: Add Page Titles
Add page titles to each website section to add navigation to the different sections of your website along the top menu bar.
To add page titles, click on a website section. In the left toolbar, select ‘Notes’ and then add a title to the area titled, ‘Add a page title.’
Adding page titles will allow your sections to show up in a menu bar so people can easily scroll to the section they want:
Step 7: Edit Your Website Settings and Add Page Titles
You’re ready to publish your website! Select ‘Publish Website’ in the top menu bar.
In the publisher settings menu, you’ll want to check the box to make your website mobile-friendly. If you added page titles, you can select them to show by selecting ‘With Navigation’ from the dropdown menu.
Step 8: Publish to a Free Canva Domain
When you are happy with your website’s design, you can publish it to a free Canva domain. This allows you to share your website with others via a link that Canva provides. In the publishing menu, select ‘Publish to…Free Domain.’
You can edit the last bit of text to make your website easier to remember. Try to keep it descriptive and as short as possible.
Add a page description that briefly describes what is on your page. This will appear if people share the link online or on social media.
Advanced Settings
You can edit a few advanced settings if you’d like for your website before you publish. You can add an optional password to your website (helpful if you don’t want the information to be publically viewable) and also select whether you want people to be able to find it in search-engines.
Step 9: Create QR Codes to Share the Website
If you want an easy way for people to access your website, consider creating a QR code. Smartphones can scan QR codes and take users to your website. Canva makes it easy to create a QR code that links to your website to share in newsletters or print out and attach to your fundraiser materials. Here’s where to find Canva’s QR code generator.
Once you have a URL for your new website, you’ll just copy/paste that link into the generator.
Step 10: Distribute the Link and QR Code to Students, Parents, and Community
Finally, it’s time to share your website with the world! You can distribute the link and QR code to your music students, their parents, and the wider community. You can share it on social media or include it in your school’s email newsletter, send it home in your parent communications, and more.
View a Sample Website
Here’s a sample 1-Page website I built in under 20 minutes using Canva.
Final Thoughts
Creating a one-page website for your music events doesn’t have to be a stressful process. With Canva, you can create a free, stunning website in just a few steps. By using Canva’s templates, design elements, and QR codes, you can easily promote your concerts, fundraisers, shows, and more to your students, parents, and community.
Don’t forget, if Canva overwhelms you, there’s help available! We’d love to have you join us inside the Midnight Music Community for individual tech advice, drop-in office hours, and in-depth Canva lessons in the Create Beautiful Teaching Resources with Canva Course.
Have you ever created a website for your music classroom using Canva? Leave a comment below!
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About the author
Katrina Proctor is the Content Manager at Midnight Music and is also a former music teacher from Colorado, USA. She taught middle school music for nearly 10 years in northern Colorado, where her passion is low-income students in Title 1 schools. Katrina has taught 5th-8th grade chorus, advanced-level chorus, class piano, general music, band, and orchestra. She has her Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education & Master’s Degree in Music Education-Choral Conducting from the University of Colorado at Boulder. You can connect with Katrina on Facebook or via her website, She The Teacher.
Want more resources for music tech teachers?
Hello! I’m Katie Argyle – an Australian music technology trainer and consultant with a passion for helping music teachers through my business Midnight Music.
I’m a qualified teacher but no, I don’t currently teach in a school. I help teachers through my online professional development space – the Midnight Music Community – where there are tutorial videos, courses, links and downloadable resources.
I like to focus on easy ways to incorporate technology into what you are already doing in your music curriculum through a range of creative projects. I also run live workshops and have presented at countless conferences and other music education events.
If you want simple, effective ideas for using technology in music education, I would LOVE to help you inside the Midnight Music Community.
