L2.5 – Creating Navigation Menus

Module : 02 – Creating Website Content

Lesson < : Lesson 2.4 — Creating a Homepage with Blocks
Lesson > : Lesson 3.1 — Choosing the Right Theme

What Are Navigation Menus?
Types of Menus
Accessing the Menu Editor
Creating a New Menu
Adding Pages, Links, and Categories
Organizing Menu Items
Assigning the Menu to a Location
Best Practices
Summary

1. What Are Navigation Menus?

Navigation menus help users move around your website. A menu typically contains links to important pages such as the Homepage, About page, Services page, Blog, and Contact page.

Menus improve usability and guide visitors to key areas of your site.

2. Types of Menus

Different themes offer multiple menu locations. Common types include:

Primary Menu – The main navigation bar at the top of the site
Secondary Menu – Additional navigation, often above or below the primary menu
Footer Menu – Links displayed at the bottom of the site
Mobile Menu – A responsive menu for smaller devices

Some themes offer additional menu locations depending on design structure.

3. Accessing the Menu Editor

You can create and manage menus from the WordPress dashboard.

Go to Appearance → Menus (Classic themes)
Or use Appearance → Editor → Navigation (Block themes)

The options available depend on whether your theme is a block theme or a classic theme.

4. Creating a New Menu

To create a new navigation menu:

Click Create a New Menu
Enter a name for your menu
Choose the menu location if prompted
Save the menu

This creates a blank menu where you can begin adding items.

5. Adding Pages, Links, and Categories

You can add various types of items to your menu.

Pages: Add important pages such as Home, About, Services, and Contact
Posts: Link to individual blog posts if needed
Custom Links: Add manual links to external websites or internal pages
Categories: Link to blog category archive pages

Once added, items appear in the menu structure for arranging.

6. Organizing Menu Items

Menu items can be rearranged to create clear and intuitive navigation.

Drag and drop items to change their order
Indent items to create dropdown menus
Rename menu labels for readability
Remove items using the menu item options

Dropdown menus help group related content under a single parent item.

7. Assigning the Menu to a Location

The final step is choosing where the menu should appear on your website.

Select a menu location such as Primary, Footer, or Mobile
Save your changes

Assigning the menu ensures it appears correctly for visitors.

8. Best Practices

Effective navigation improves user experience. Consider the following practices:

Limit menu items to keep navigation clear
Use simple, descriptive labels
Organize dropdowns logically
Include important pages such as Home, About, and Contact
Test menus on mobile devices

A clean menu helps visitors find what they need quickly and easily.

9. Summary

Navigation menus help users find important pages on your website
The number and type of menus vary by theme
Use the menu editor to create, edit, and organize menus
Add pages, links, posts, and categories as menu items
Assign the menu to a location such as the primary navigation
Follow best practices for clear and user-friendly menus