When embedding Mentimeter in Canvas, there are two important questions you need to answer:
Do you want the activity to be anonymous or do you want to track student participation?
Do you want the activity to be asynchronous or presented live during class?
Your choice determines how you need to add Mentimeter in Canvas.
Asynchronous use
Scenario 1: Collect questions or feedback before class (anonymous)
Goal
You want students to anonymously submit questions, insights or feedback.
Example uses
Muddiest point from last week’s lecture
Questions students want answered in the next session
Anonymous course feedback
Polling student confidence before an exam
Sense of belonging and stress check
Self-paced knowledge-check
How to set it up
Create the Mentimeter questions and activities in your mentimeter.com account
Change the setting to your Menti deck to ‘Survey’ to turn it into a self-paced activity
In Canvas, open the Module where the activity should appear.
Click Add Item.
Select External Tool.
Choose Mentimeter.
Select the Mentimeter presentation you want to use.
Publish the item.
What students experience
Students open the activity directly in Canvas and can participate anonymously.
Important
Because the activity is anonymous:
Student names are not recorded
Results cannot be graded
The experience provides a safe space for students to share challenges, express concerns and make mistakes
Scenario 2: Track participation (NOT anonymous)
Goal
Students complete a Mentimeter activity before or after class, and you want to track participation or responses.
Example uses
Pre-class knowledge check
Reflection after a lecture
Concept check before moving to the next module
Discussion prompts
How to set it up
Create the Mentimeter questions and activities in your mentimeter.com account
Change the setting to your Menti deck to ‘Survey’ to turn it into a self-paced activity
Create a Canvas Assignment.
Choose External Tool → Mentimeter.
Select your Mentimeter presentation.
In Mentimeter settings, toggle Names & Login ON before students vote.
Set a due date.
Publish the assignment.
Once you ready to sync grades, go to the Mentimeter assignment. Open the "Results" tab. Click on "Sync to LMS" and select ‘Participation’. SEE FLOW HERE
Note: You can edit grades or add weightings as per usual in your LMS gradebook. However, should you re-sync the results from Mentimeter, those changes may be overridden.
What students experience
Students access the Mentimeter activity in Canvas and respond at their own pace. They can only join the Menti through Canvas.
Instructor outcome
You can:
Track who completed the activity
Review responses linked to student names and grade
Synchronous use
Scenario 3: Collect questions or feedback during class (anonymous)
Goal
You want to include anonymous Menti activities in your Canvas modules.
Example uses
Live knowledge checks during class
Anonymous opinion or debate prompts
Real-time confidence checks
Collecting questions during class
How to set it up
1. Create the Mentimeter questions and activities in your mentimeter.com account
2. In Canvas, open the Module where the activity should appear.
3. Click Add Item.
4. Select External Tool.
5. Choose Mentimeter.
6. Select the Mentimeter presentation you want to use.
7. Publish the item.
8. Present your Menti during class.
What students experience
Students open the activity directly in Canvas and can participate anonymously. They can also join via the QR code or Menti code as usual, outside Canvas.
Important
Because the activity is anonymous:
Student names are not recorded
Participation cannot be graded
Attendance cannot be tracked
The experience provides a safe space for students to share challenges, express concerns and make mistakes
Scenario 4: Track attendance during class (NOT anonymous)
Goal
You want to record which students attended class.
Example uses
Check-in poll at the beginning of class
“How are you feeling today?” question
Quick warm-up quiz
How to set it up
Create the Mentimeter questions and activities in your mentimeter.com account
In Canvas, create a New Assignment.
Select External Tool as the submission type.
Choose Mentimeter.
Select your Mentimeter presentation.
In Mentimeter settings, toggle names and login ON before students vote
Publish the assignment.
Once you ready to sync grades, go to the Mentimeter assignment. Open the "Results" tab. Click on "Sync to LMS" and select ‘Attendance’.
Note: You can edit grades or add weightings as per usual in your LMS gradebook. However, should you re-sync the results from Mentimeter, those changes may be overridden.
What students experience
Students open the assignment in Canvas and respond to the Mentimeter questions. They can only join the Menti through Canvas.
Because names and login are enabled, Mentimeter records who participated.
Instructor outcome
You can see:
Which students joined
Who submitted responses
Attendance data
Scenario 5: Track quiz results during class (NOT anonymous)
Goal
You run an interactive activity during class and want to track which students participated.
Example uses
Live quiz questions
Knowledge checks during clas
Formative assessment exercises
How to set it up
Create the Mentimeter questions and activities in your mentimeter.com account
Create a Canvas Assignment.
Choose External Tool → Mentimeter.
Select your Mentimeter presentation.
In Mentimeter settings, toggle names and login ON before students vote
Publish the assignment.
Once you ready to sync grades, go to the Mentimeter assignment. Open the "Results" tab. Click on "Sync to LMS" and select ‘Quiz results.
What students experience
Students join the activity from Canvas and respond live.
Instructor outcome
You can see:
Who participated
Which responses they submitted
Participation records for grading