Creating a Google assignment

Establish a Google account

A UM System G Suite account is required. All UM System faculty, staff and students can create an account.

  1. Go to www.google.com and select Sign in in the page’s upper right-hand corner.
  2. Enter your login in the format USERNAME@umsystem.edu. Select Next.
  3. Accept terms.

Add assignment(s) to your Google account

To create a Google Assignment in your Canvas site:

  1. From your Canvas site, select Assignments in your course navigation menu.
  2. Enter a name, description and point value.
  3. In the Submission Type section, select External Tool from the dropdown menu (See Fig. 1).
    Figure 1: Select the External Tool option.
    Figure 1: Select the External Tool option.
  4. Select Find (see Fig. 2).
    Figure 2: Select the Find button.
    Figure 2: Select the Find button.
  5. In the Configure External Tool pop-up window, scroll down the list and locate the Google Assignments tool (See Fig. 3). Select it.
    Figure 3: Locate the Google Assignments tool in the list.
    Figure 3: Locate the Google Assignments tool in the list.
  6. A pop-up window will appear. Login to your Google Drive account, or confirm that the account you are currently logged into is correct. Select Continue.
  7. The pop-up window will switch to the Create a Google assignment page (See Fig. 4).
    • Choose whether you want to use the plagiarism (originality) tool.
    • Attach files from your Google Drive that you want to use with the assignment.
    • Enter the same point value that you did in the Canvas page. 
    • If you will enter a due date in the Canvas page, enter the same date here. Otherwise, leave this field blank.
    • Choose whether you want to use a rubric. If so, select a Rubric or create a new one. Otherwise, skip this step.
      Figure 4: Google Assignments set up.
      Figure 4: Google Assignments set up.
  8. Select Create . You'll return to the Configure External Tool pop-up window.
  9. Select Select . The pop-up window closes, and you will return to the Canvas Assignment page.
  10. Continuing entering the information on the Canvas page. If you entered a due date on the Google Assignment pop-up window, enter the same date here. 
  11. Select Save & Publish or Save.

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Submit, review, and grade assignment submissions in native Google format (for example, Google Docs, Google Sheets, Google Slides, Google Sites, etc.) as well as almost any file type stored in Google Drive.