Prepare Canvas communication for new course contacts
Add a course contact to Notion and prompt the communication setup they need in Canvas.
Trigger
Page Created
Triggers when a new Notion page is created. Customer optionally scopes with at most one of: - data_source_id: new row in this data source - parent_page_id: new sub-page under this page (immediate parent only) With neither set, fires for any new page in the workspace the integration has access to. Notion sends ~60s aggregation latency on most events.
Action
Create communication channel
Creates a new communication channel (e.g., email, sms, push) for an existing canvas user to receive notifications.
Why this helps
Communication setup can be forgotten when adding a contact requires separate actions across planning and course tools.
- Reduce manual communication setup steps.
- Keep new course contacts from getting lost in handoffs.
- Make course onboarding more repeatable.
Setup
Build it in a few focused steps.
- 1Connect Notion and Canvas to Notis once through the portal.
- 2Create an automation in the portal, or ask Notis in plain language for the outcome.
- 3In one instruction, ask Notis to create the appropriate communication channel for an existing Canvas user when a relevant course contact page is added in Notion.
- 4Select the Notion Page Created trigger and choose a channel for run reports.
- 5Test with one real contact and confirm the intended Canvas user and channel.
Questions about this workflow
Can this create a Canvas user too?
The selected action creates a communication channel for an existing Canvas user. The user must already exist.
How can I limit it to contacts?
Describe the relevant contact pages in the instruction and scope the page-created trigger to the appropriate parent or data source.
When this happens · Trigger
Do this · Action
Supported Triggers and Actions
Notis builds workflows that link Notion to Canvas. A trigger fires from one place; an action lands in another.
Notion triggers
Canvas actions
Recurring trigger
Notis starts this workflow on a schedule, such as daily, weekly, or during business hours.
Create account notification
Creates a global notification within a canvas account, ensuring `end at` is after `start at` and any specified `notification roles` are valid.
Webhook trigger
Notis starts this workflow when an external tool or custom backend sends an HTTP request.
Create appointment group
Creates a new appointment group in canvas for schedulable time slots within specified course or group contexts.
All Page Events
Triggers when any Notion page is created or updated across the workspace.
Create an assignment
Creates a new assignment within a specified course in canvas lms.
Comment Created
Triggers when a new comment is created in Notion. Optional `page_id` filter scopes to comments on a specific page. When omitted, fires for any new comment in the workspace the integration has access to. Requires the 'Read comments' capability on the Notion integration. If a connection was authorized before that capability was enabled, the user must re-authorize the connection for comment events to flow.
Create assignment override
Creates an assignment override to adjust due/unlock/lock dates for an assignment in a course, targeting specific students (requires `title`), a group, or a course section; at least one target (`student ids`, `group id`, or `course section id`) is required.
New Comment
Triggers when a new comment is added to a specified Notion block or page.
Create Calendar Event
Creates a calendar event with options for recurrence (finite `rrule` series only), section-specific timings, and blackout dates within a specified context.
Database Created
Triggers when a new Notion database (the container) is created. A database is the post-2025-09-03 container that holds one or more data sources. This trigger fires for the container's creation event (`database.created`), distinct from `NOTION_DATASOURCE_CREATED` which fires when a new data source is added to an existing database. Most customers calling Notion's `POST /v1/databases` (the legacy API) or creating a database via the Notion UI will see this event. Adding a new data source to an existing database fires `data_source.created` instead — use `NOTION_DATASOURCE_CREATED` for that. Notion's payload puts `entity.type: "block"` (the container is a `child_database` block in the content tree) and `entity.id` is the database id.
Create communication channel
Creates a new communication channel (e.g., email, sms, push) for an existing canvas user to receive notifications.
Data Source Created
Triggers when a new Notion data source is created. Fires workspace-wide. The payload's `data.parent` carries the data source's tree parent (typically the teamspace) for downstream filtering. A single template-based database creation can fire multiple `data_source.created` events at once — one per data source the template instantiates.
Create content share
Shares a canvas content item to specified users, if the sender has necessary permissions and receiver ids are valid.
Data Source Schema Updated
Triggers when a Notion data source's schema is updated. Fires on column add / remove / rename. Payload includes `data.updated_properties: [{id, name, action}]` so consumers can discriminate the kind of change downstream. Optional `data_source_id` filter scopes to schema changes on a single data source. When omitted, fires for any schema change in the workspace the integration has access to. Note: adding a column also fires `page.properties_updated` once per existing row in the data source. Customers wanting a single structural-change signal should use this trigger.
Create conversation
Use to send messages in canvas by creating a new conversation or adding to an existing one; an existing conversation with the same recipients (and matching scope/filter, if specified) may be reused unless `force new` is true.
Connect any two apps with Notis in the middle.
Notion and Canvas, or any other combination from 1,000+ integrations.
When this happens · Trigger
Do this · Action
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