How do I reply to a discussion as a student?

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You can easily reply to any discussion. However, the reply option may vary depending upon how your instructor set up the discussion. Discussion replies can be edited or deleted, as long as your instructor has not restricted this setting in your course.

Before submitting a reply for a graded discussion, you may want to review all discussion information, such as the graded discussion rubric, if any.

Note:

The discussion reply Rich Content Editor includes a word count display below the bottom right corner of the text box.
If your discussion looks different than what is displayed in this lesson, your instructor may be using Discussions Redesign in your course. Learn how to reply to a discussion in Discussions Redesign.

Open Discussions

In Course Navigation, click the Discussions link.

Open Discussion

Click the title of the discussion.

Reply to Discussion

To reply to the main discussion, type your reply in the Reply field.

Post a Message

Write your response in the Rich Content Editor [1]. You can add links, photos, equations, and/or media. If your instructor allows, you can also attach files [2]. Once you finish, click the Post Reply button [3].

View Your Reply

Your reply will be posted at the bottom of the discussion reply thread. The border of your post will flash indicating it has been newly posted. The unread icon next to your post will immediately change to the read icon if Canvas automatically marks your posts as read. However, if you manually mark your posts as read, the unread icon will remain until you manually mark it as read.

Thread a Discussion Reply

Reply to a Comment in a Focused Discussion