Learn how to publish your lesson, choose the right visibility setting, review the lesson details page, and download the documents CARL prepares for you.
Publishing moves your lesson from the editor into a finished lesson details page. From there, you can review the published version, manage visibility, and download the files you need for teaching, sharing, printing, or saving outside of CARL.
Think of publishing as the final checkpoint in your lesson-building workflow. Your lesson does not need to be perfect, but it should be organized enough that you are comfortable teaching from it, downloading it, or sharing the published version.
| Step | What happens |
|---|---|
| Review | Check your lesson title, structure, components, teaching resources, and any sensitive classroom details. |
| Publish | CARL creates the published version of the lesson and prepares the lesson details page. |
| Choose visibility | You decide who should be able to see the lesson. |
| Download | Use the lesson details page to access downloadable files when they are ready. |
Before publishing, do a quick scan of the lesson. This is especially helpful if you used a Saved Class Profile, generated components, added Teaching Resources, or made several edits in the lesson editor.
- Check that your lesson title, grade, subject, and topic are clear.
- Review the main lesson sequence and make sure it is complete enough to teach from.
- Make sure any student-facing components you want included have been added.
- Make sure any Teaching Resources you want included have been added and reviewed.
- Check that your Saved Class Profile context is correct, if you used one.
- Remove student names, private class details, or sensitive information before choosing broader visibility.
When your lesson is ready, open the Publish panel. This is where you confirm the final publishing choices before CARL creates the published version of your lesson.
Use the Publish panel when your lesson is saved and ready to publish.
- Review your lesson in the editor.
- Open the Publish panel.
- Confirm your visibility setting.
- Publish the lesson.
- Review the lesson details page after publishing.
- Download your documents when they are ready.
Visibility controls who can see the lesson after it is published. A lesson can be useful to you without being ready for everyone else. When in doubt, start with the more private option and broaden visibility later only after you have reviewed the lesson carefully.
| Choose this approach | When it makes sense |
|---|---|
| Keep it private | You are still drafting, testing ideas, using classroom-specific context, or saving a lesson mainly for your own planning. |
| Use broader visibility | The lesson is polished enough for others to view, save, remix, or learn from, and it does not include sensitive classroom details. |
After publishing, CARL takes you to the lesson details page. This is the best place to confirm that the published version looks right before downloading or sharing it.
Review the published lesson details page before downloading or sharing.
- the lesson title and overview,
- the grade, subject, or curriculum context,
- the lesson sequence and major sections,
- student-facing components,
- teaching resources or supports,
- downloads and file status.
Downloads let you take your CARL lesson into the places teachers actually use materials: print folders, LMS spaces, shared planning folders, email, or offline teaching notes.
Use the downloads area to access the documents CARL prepares for your published lesson.
| If you see... | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Download button | The file is ready. | Open or save the document, then check that it includes the correct lesson content. |
| Loading spinner | The document may still be generating. | Wait a minute, then refresh the lesson details page and check again, especially for longer lessons with several components. |
| Missing or old content | Your latest edits may not have been saved or published. | Return to the editor, save changes, publish again, and then check the download area. |
| If you want to... | Do this |
|---|---|
| Publish a lesson | Review the lesson, open Publish, choose visibility, then publish. |
| Keep a lesson just for yourself | Choose the private or most limited visibility option. |
| Share a lesson more broadly | Remove sensitive classroom details first, then choose the appropriate broader visibility option. |
| Check the published lesson | Review the lesson details page after publishing. |
| Download lesson documents | Use the download area on the lesson details page. |
| Fix an outdated download | Return to the editor, save changes, publish again, and check the download area. |
| Adapt someone else’s shared lesson | Create a remix instead of editing the original lesson. |