In this supportive guide you will find resources on how to use this tool in your teaching. 

  • For general information about this tool, please see back to the tool's main page.
  • For details on technical help with this tool, please refer to the support section on the main tool page.

Overview

Lucidchart is a diagramming and visualization tool useful for creating flowcharts, mind maps, organizational charts, and other visual organizers. Users can utilize a variety of shapes, arrows, text, and other tools to bring their ideas to life in an eye-catching way. It is integrated with the Canvas Learning Management System at USask, making it accessible for both instructors and students.

Lucidchart is a similar tool to Lucidspark, another tool available for use at USask through Canvas. To better understand the differences, please refer to the main tool pages.

Main features:

  • Collaborative whiteboards (brainstorming)
  • Interactive discussions
  • Project planning and management
  • Creative twist on presentations
  • Great tool for formative assessment

Content created in Lucidspark can be embedded in Canvas to be used in places such as Pages, Assignments, Quizzes, or Discussions.

Teaching examples

Enhance

Lucidchart allows students to work independently in a digital, visual medium to organize information. Students can take large ideas and filter them down into easy-to-digest diagrams or charts. This platform enables both students and instructors to engage with each other and the learning material in a space designed for interactive learning.

Example: Instead of having students write out text-based descriptions for a process or project outline, they could demonstrate their understanding of the process or explain their project outline through a visual medium. Having the opportunity to view the entire process or outline at a glance could enhance a student's understanding of the content.

Extend

Students can use Lucidchart independently to help them organize their own notes or plan out their own projects. However, students could take this a step further by planning a group project and even using Lucidchart as their presentation tool instead of PowerPoint. This would allow students and instructors to see their project grow from an idea into a presentation in one collaborative file.

Example: If the instructor assigns the class a group project, the groups can gather on Lucidchart to work together on their project. Using Lucidchart, students (and the instructor) can watch their projects grow over time, from brainstorming to sharing ideas and tracking their progress. Student contributions can be tagged with the student's name or NSID, allowing the instructor to see what content each person is contributing to the group. This enables the instructor to use Lucidchart as a formative assessment tool while encouraging students to take responsibility for their learning in a collaborative environment.

Empower

Lucidchart is incredibly versatile for simply being labeled as visual diagramming software. Ambitious students who want to branch out from traditional methods can use Lucidchart to organize and visualize their notes, work collaboratively with peers on projects, and even create presentations.

Example: Similar to the "Extend" example above, a group of students has been given a final assessment in the form of an in-class group presentation. These students have been using Lucidchart in their study group to visualize their notes and share ideas throughout the term. They can easily transform these ideas into their final presentation and use Lucidchart to present in a creative way. Finally, reflection and growth are simple and straightforward because all of their work is in one place and laid out in an easy-to-digest visual format. Students will truly get to see their work grow throughout the entire term from their first set of notes all the way to their final assessment.

Resources to support

*The links below may require a USask NSID login to access.
Vendor Support Lucid Software Help Center

Video Instructions:



For additional learning and practice, try out the Lucidchart courses on the Lucid Learning Campus.

Additional resource links:


This was created with the assistance of AI tools, as described in the GMCTL AI Disclosure Statement.