How do I set up my family Canvas Observer account for my student(s)?

Canvas has an excellent tool for parents and guardians to be able to stay in the know about their student's coursework: Observers! Observers are able to view their student's account and communicate with their student's instructors to stay up to date on what's due, as well as course progress.

How do I get an Observer account?
I already have an Observer account but need to pair it with a new student

Observers can view published course information such as assignments but cannot edit or submit coursework. You can find more information on their capabilities in this article:

What can and can't parents or guardians do in a Canvas Observer account?

How do I get an Observer account?

Your Observer account will be automatically created using the email address on file with ORCA. You should get an email from Canvas with instructions on how to access your account. If you'd like to create another account, follow the steps below:

1. First, follow the guide below to generate a Pairing Code from your student's Canvas account. It will come in handy soon!
 

How do I generate an Observer Pairing Code as a student?

2. Once you have a pairing code, go to the ORCA Canvas portal and select Parent/Guardian.

3. At the Canvas login page, click the link toward the top-right of the screen that says "Parent of a Canvas User? Click Here For an Account".

4. In the window that appears, enter your Name, Email, a Password for your account, and the Pairing Code you generated earlier.

5. Once you click "Start Participating" your account will be created, and you will be signed in. You can always return to the ORCA Canvas portal, select Parent/Guardian, and sign in to your account using the email and password you have set.

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I already have an Observer account but need to pair it with a new student

1. Generate a Pairing Code from the account of the student you'd like to pair your Observer account with.

2. Head to the ORCA Canvas portal, select Parent/Guardian, and sign in to your account.

3. From the sidebar menu, click on Accounts and then Settings.

4. From the Settings page, click Observing, generally located at the bottom of available links.

5. Enter in your Student Pairing Code and click +Student to add your student to your Observer account.

6. You can now see all of the students that you are actively observing under Students Being Observed.

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Receiving an Error Code?

If you receive the error "Already in use" when entering in your email, that means an account has already been created with this email, and you will not need to go through the steps of setting it back up. Simply exit the pop-up screen and click "Forgot Password".

If you receive the error "Invalid pairing code" please see our "Generating a Observing Parent Code" article.


 

If you're unable to successfully pair your observer account, don't hesitate to reach out to our technical support team by following the advice in this guide article:

How do I get technical support?

You can also check out our Observer Day in the Life course for a more in depth look into Observer Accounts.