The easiest way to share a Google Drive file in Canvas is to share a link. The only consideration is how it is shared and who it is shared with. The image below shows the options available to you when you click the "Share" button on any file in Google Drive. Here you can share with anyone in your institution, the whole world, or make the file public and searchable in the web. Typically teachers will set this option to share with anyone with the link or anyone at your district/school with the link.

You can also choose how others will be able to work with your document. In the Access options, you can set the access to "Can view, Can Comment, or Can edit." If you set this to "Can View," students will be able to make a copy of the file to edit and use as their own version in their Google Drive. If you set this to "Can edit," students can work on the live document together.

Once you have this link, you can share it on any Canvas page, assignment, quiz, announcement, discussion, etc. You can also share this link as an external URL element in any Canvas module.

Link Sharing.png

PRO TIP: Every Google Drive file has a URL that ends with /edit. If you change this to /copy and share it, student will be prompted to make a copy of this file and add it to their Drive. This can save students a step and get them started with their own copy of a file a little quicker.

Screen Shot 2016-02-28 at 11.58.41 AM.png

Here is an example Certificate of Awesomeness Copy