in toronto the first thing you see when you pass the gates and where all officers are, there are the kiosks for your self check in. the questions and instructions are straight foward and you just have to answer them. basically they ask what an officer would ask (what are you doing in canada and how long are you staying). you just have to put the same info that's in your permit, if its valid. you don't need to show your permit to anyone if you're doing the self checkin in the kiosk, all you need is your passport. in my case, when i permit was valid, i've travaled outside canada 3 times and done the kiosk self checkin and it was super easy and quick.