Before You Start Adding Widgets…

The homepage generated for your course in Brightspace, named the Default Course Homepage, is not editable – you cannot add, remove, or change the widgets associated with it. In order to customize widgets on your course homepage, you need to first complete the steps from one of the options below.

METHOD ‘A’: Copy and modify the Default Course Homepage

> Step 1: Create a copy of the Default Course Homepage

  1. In the course navbar, go to Course Admin.
  2. In the Site Setup section, click Homepages.
  3. On the page that opens, locate the Default Course Homepage on the list. Click the down arrow next to its name. In the menu that opens, click Copy.
  4. You have just created a copy of the Default Course Homepage, and it is listed underneath the original version. The blue front in which the new homepage appears indicates that the page is available to you for editing (unlike the black font for non-editable homepages).
Note: The Default Course Homepage is not the only homepage available to be copied in this step. You can do so with any of the homepages listed.

> Step 2: Activate your new homepage

  1. On the Homepages page, locate the Active Homepage box and click the down arrow inside it.
  2. From the drop-down menu that opens, select Default Course Homepage – Copy.
  3. Click Apply. Your new homepage is now activated and ready to be modified.

> Step 3: Customize your new homepage

Now that you have created and activated your new homepage, you are ready to customize it according to your needs.

  1. On the Homepages page, locate the Default Course Homepage – Copy that you just created and click on it.
  2. A page titled Edit homepage will open. On this page, you can change the name of your new homepage and make other available modifications.
  3. Scroll down to the Widgets section.
  4. You may now begin to customize the widgets on your homepage. Your options are to:
    • Delete a widget by clicking the X symbol in the widget’s top right corner
    • Change a widget’s location by clicking and dragging it to a different location within a panel
    • Modify a widget by clicking it and choosing whether to: hide its title, restrict the ability to minimize it, or change the widget’s display name
    • Add a new widget

> Video Instructions for Method ‘A’

METHOD ‘B’: Create a new homepage from scratch

> Step 1: Create your new homepage

  1. In the course navbar, go to Course Admin.
  2. In the Site Setup section, click Homepages.
  3. On the page that opens, click Create Homepage.
  4. On the new page that opens, give your new page a name and make other available selections (note that the Description will not be available to the students).
  5. Scroll down to the Widgets section where you can begin adding widgets of your choice.

> Step 2: Activate the new homepage

  1. In the course navbar, go to Course Admin.
  2. In the Site Setup section, click Homepages.
  3. On the page that opens, locate the Active Homepage box and click the down arrow inside the box.
  4. From the drop-down menu that opens, select the homepage that you created and named in Step 1 above.
  5. Click Apply. Your new homepage is now activated.

> Video Instructions for Method ‘B’