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Turn individual pieces into a clear classroom design. Select the right items, line them up, control what sits in front, and keep related pieces together without losing the ability to edit them.
About 8 minutesBeginner friendlySelection, layout, and groups
1. Select the items you want to change
Click an item on the canvas to select it. A selection outline and handles appear, with an action toolbar above the workspace. Click an empty part of the canvas to clear the selection.
If another item covers the one you need, open Layers on the right and click its row. This is also the easiest way to select small items or identify a group.
Select several items
On the canvas: hold Shift and click additional items, or drag a selection box from an empty area across the items you want. Hold Shift while drawing another box to add to the selection.
In Layers: click the first row, then Shift-click another row to select the range between them. Ctrl-click on Windows or Cmd-click on Mac toggles individual rows in the selection.
With the keyboard: use Ctrl + A on Windows or Cmd + A on Mac to select the board's visible ordinary items. Repeating borders and banners are excluded from this shortcut and from box selection; select those directly or through Layers.
Keep the canvas workspace focused when using shortcuts. If the cursor is in a text or number field, the keys apply to that field instead.
2. Move, resize, and rotate precisely
Drag the selected item to move it. Drag its resize handles to change its size, or the rotation handle above the selection to turn it. A multi-selection moves together when dragged.
Open Properties for exact adjustments. Under Basics, use Width, Height, X, Y, Rotate (°), and Opacity. Size and position fields show their current unit, such as (in). Enter a value and click outside the field to finish.
Keep ratio: when this control is available, keep it enabled to preserve the item's proportions while changing its dimensions.
Small adjustments: use the arrow keys to nudge a selection. Hold Shift with an arrow key for a larger step.
Straight movement: hold Shift while dragging to constrain movement to a straight line.
Rotation steps: hold Shift while rotating to snap to 10-degree increments.
3. Align items and distribute a row or column
The layout icons at the top of Properties change with your selection. Hover over an icon to read its action name.
Selection | Controls | Use them for |
|---|---|---|
One item | Snap to board left edge, horizontal center, right edge, top edge, vertical middle, or bottom edge | Positioning that item relative to the board itself. |
Two or more items | Align left, center, right, top, middle, or bottom | Aligning the selected items within their combined selection bounds. |
Three or more items | Distribute top, bottom, left, or right edges; distribute vertical or horizontal centers | Spacing the chosen edge or center reference evenly between the outermost items. |
Example: make a tidy row of matching images
Create the copies. Select an image and choose Duplicate twice. Place the three images roughly where you want the row.
Set the endpoints. Move the leftmost and rightmost images to define the row's overall span.
Select all three images. Use Shift-click on the canvas or select their range in Layers.
Open Properties. Choose Align middle to line up their vertical centers.
4. Control what appears in front
Items near the top of Layers appear in front of items lower in the list. Select an item and use the stacking controls at the top of Properties:
Bring to front: place the item above the other layers.
Bring forward: move it forward one layer.
Send to back: place it behind the other layers.
Send backward: move it backward one layer.
With multiple items selected, the labels include selected. A disabled arrow means the selection cannot move farther in that direction. You can also drag an unlocked layer row up or down in Layers to change its order.
Changing the order does not move an item across the board. Use it when a title needs to sit above a decoration, or when a shape should sit behind the artwork it supports.
Flip horizontal and Flip vertical are separate layout controls for supported items. They mirror the artwork; they do not change its stacking order. Ordinary text and some special items do not support flipping.
5. Group related pieces
A group lets you move and resize related pieces as one item. It is useful for a title with decorations, a cluster of clipart, or the row of books in this example.
Select the pieces. Choose the unlocked, compatible items you want in the group.
Choose Group Selected. At narrower editor widths, open the three-dot More selection actions menu above the canvas to find it.
Name the group. Open Layers, double-click the new group's name, enter something useful such as Book row, and press Enter.
To separate an ordinary group again, select the group itself and choose Ungroup from its selection actions. Ctrl + G on Windows or Cmd + G on Mac groups a compatible multi-selection or ungroups a selected ordinary group.
6. Edit individual items inside a group
You can change a group’s contents while keeping the group together. Select the group and choose Edit Group to open Group elements in Properties. Select a child there to edit it, or use the Layers workflow below.
Expand the group in Layers. Click the small arrow beside its name. Its items appear as indented sub-layers.
Select an indented item. Then open Properties. The panel identifies it with Inside followed by the group's name.
Adjust the item. Use its Basics controls or canvas handles. X in group and Y in group describe its position inside the group.
Return to the whole group. Click the parent group row in Layers when you want your next change to affect all its pieces.
The Group elements section also provides controls to reorder, replace, or remove pieces, plus Add from canvas and Add from library to extend the group.
In Layers, an individual sub-layer's three-dot menu offers Rename, Lock, Duplicate, Move out of group, and Delete. Move out of group extracts that piece as a separate board item while keeping the remaining pieces grouped.
7. Hide, lock, duplicate, or remove items
Hide an item temporarily
Click the eye beside a row in Layers to hide that item. The row stays in the list, and its eye control changes to Show. Click it again to restore the item. A group's eye hides or shows the whole group; a sub-layer's eye affects that piece.
Check visibility before exporting: hidden items are omitted from the rendered board. The eye at the top of Layers toggles visibility for all top-level layers.
Protect a finished position
Select an item and choose Lock selected in the action toolbar, or open its Layers menu and choose Lock. This helps prevent accidental movement while you arrange nearby pieces. To work on it again, select its row in Layers and choose Unlock.
Reuse or remove a piece
Choose Duplicate in the selection toolbar for a copy you can change independently. With several items selected, use Duplicate selected. Copy and paste are also available in the top board toolbar.
8. Keep the most useful shortcuts close
Action | Windows | Mac |
|---|---|---|
Duplicate | Ctrl + D | Cmd + D |
Copy / paste | Ctrl + C / Ctrl + V | Cmd + C / Cmd + V |
Group / ungroup an ordinary group | Ctrl + G | Cmd + G |
Nudge / larger nudge | Arrow keys / Shift + arrow keys | Arrow keys / Shift + arrow keys |
Undo | Ctrl + Z | Cmd + Z |
Redo | Ctrl + Y or Ctrl + Shift + Z | Cmd + Shift + Z |
For the full list and canvas navigation shortcuts, see Work Faster with Keyboard Shortcuts in BoardCraft.
Continue with Save Your Board and Resolve Editing Conflicts or Which BoardCraft Export Should I Use?.
