Make sure you have combined any course sections before beginning work on designing your course.

Steps to Consider in Building a Course

Add Your Syllabus

Edit your Syllabus Page (left hand column tabs).

Cut and paste your entire syllabus on this Page and/or
Provide a link for students to download and print the entire document if they choose

If you cut and paste your syllabus, you can link to all text, images, and video that you have uploaded into your Course Files.
The Syllabus Page is connected to The Calendar, Assignments, and The Gradebook. This means that as you add anything to those, the chart at the very bottom of your Syllabus Page will be automatically updated. You cannot delete this chart. You may use your syllabus page as your home page as described below.

Choose and Design Your Home Page (Front Page)

This is the first entry point and "landing spot" for your students each time they enter your course.
Make it purposeful, directing them to the most important resources they will need to be successful.
Choices:

To choose from the above, click on the Home tab (left column) then on "Choose Home Page".
The default home page is "Course Modules" modules generally serve as a "Table of Contents" but the teacher of the course has full control over this content.
A "Pages - Front Page" is simply a content page in Canvas and you can link to any other area in the course from that page. In order to use this option, you must first create a Page with whatever you want on it, then set it as your Home Page/Front Page.
The Syllabus works in a similar fashion to a front page, but has the added benefit of listing the course assignments by default at the bottom of the page.
The Course Modules would work as a home page that looks like a table of contents for your course, if you have imported content from another LMS, your Modules page may be overwhelming so may not be the best to choose as your course home page.
The Assignments as a home page would require that you are using the Assignments tool as your primary or only course structure, if you are planning this it is probably best to go with using the Syllabus as your home page and view the list of assignments from there.
Note: If you choose any of the last three options (the Course Modules, the Assignment List, or Syllabus) you do not need to show the corresponding tabs on the left, you can choose to hide them by going to course Settings-->Navigation.

Course Structure (Organizing Content)

Create Assignments and Quizzes

Check quizzes and tests imported review questions and parameters you can assign when in EDIT.
Quizzes and tests automatically are listed at the end of the syllabus; when dates are added they will populate the entire course including the course calendar and appear in order at the end of the syllabus.
Assignments menu is the location of all graded and ungraded assignments (including quizzes and exams) in the course; by creating assignment categories you basically create your grade book.
When creating or reviewing assignments, review parameters for assignments in EDIT mode.

Publish Your Course

When you begin building your course, it is unpublished. You will see the following message at the top of the course Home Page.

When you are ready to allow students to access the course, click the "published" link in the image similar to above that you find on the top of your course Home Page (left hand tab). This is also the last step in the Canvas Course Setup Checklist, Next Steps list (that appears at the bottom of your Home Page when you start working in a new course). Once published, your students will see the course in "Courses and Groups" drop-down list (top purple bar).