Longsight Support PortalSakaiSakai 2.9 Basics for InstructorsSetting Up Your CourseHow do I rearrange or rename the items in the Tool Menu?

How do I rearrange or rename the items in the Tool Menu?

The Tool Menu can be customized by the instructor of the course to modify the order or appearance of menu items in the site. 

Go to Site Info.

Go to Site Info.

Select the Site Info tool from the Tool Menu in your site.

Click on Page Order.

Click on Page Order.

Click the Page Order button.

Drag and drop to reorder items.

Drag and drop to reorder items.

Click and hold to select the item you would like to move, then drag it to the desired location in the menu and release.  

Moving a tool to the top of the list makes it the default landing page when users enter your site.  The Home tool is generally recommended as the landing page for most sites, so it appears at the top by default.

Modify the appearance or availability of menu items.

Modify the appearance or availability of menu items.

The icons to the left of menu items allow you to customize the tools for your course.  

Edit tool name

Edit tool name

The pencil icon allows you to edit the name of the tool as it appears in your course menu.  

Note: Changing the default system name for commonly used tools (such as Forums, Messages, Assignments, etc.) is not recommended.  Using custom tool titles can make it difficult for students to learn the tool set across different courses, and it can make it more difficult for users to get support from helpdesk staff or documentation using the default tool names.

Click the green check mark to save any tool title changes.

Click the green check mark to save any tool title changes.

If you do edit a tool title, don't forget to click on the green check mark to save your change.  Clicking on the small green x will cancel the edit.

Hide tool from students

Hide tool from students

The lightbulb icon allows you to hide a tool from students in the course. It will still be available in the Tool Menu for instructors and teaching assistants, but students will not see that item. This can be useful if you would like to control access to certain tools via Lessons. Also, you may sometimes choose to hide tools such as Resources so that students are not able to browse directly to course files.

Tools that are hidden can still be accessed by students if you link to the tool from some other area of the course (i.e. Lessons). Hiding an item only controls the visibility of the tool in the Tool Menu.

Disable tool for students

Disable tool for students

The padlock icon allows you to disable a tool for students. Disabling a tool means that students will not be able to access or use that tool, even if they link to it from another location in the course. Disabled items are also hidden from students in the Tool Menu by default.

Delete tool from menu

Delete tool from menu

The red X allows you to delete the tool from the menu. (Remember that Sakai does not delete content associated with a tool when the tool is remove from the menu.)

If the red X is not available for a particular tool, that means that the tool cannot be deleted from the menu.

Save your menu changes

Save your menu changes

Don't forget to click the Save button before leaving the Page Order screen to save your changes.