Q Purpose In this discussion I would like you to practice focusing on the elements of fiction to develop an interpretation of a story. Instructions Add a new discussion topic in this forum by (to do so, just click the "reply" button below). In your post please include the following: Procedure: 1. Since you will not be attending class for four hours a week, these discussions are an important part of cultivating your understanding of the stories. Please read the stories twice and respond carefully to the prompts below. Of course—be super polite and respond to others as you would have them respond to you. 2. In order to see your classmates’ responses, you will need to upload your homework responses. Once you have uploaded your responses, read through your classmates’ responses and take note of any comments that improve, question, or modify your understanding of the story. 3. Everyone is required to post at least two replies. Please write 3-6 sentences for each of the two classmates. You may start by expressing agreement and then explain how the response helps your understanding of the story. You may ask questions about someone’s interpretation but please avoid stating that a particular comment is wrong. Instead, just thank each other for sharing and then give your own interpretation. A lot of learning can take place when we listen to others and then modify and improve our own understanding What to Do You may respond to either Tony Hoagland's "America" or Allen Ginsberg's. In your initial post, please respond to at least three of the following questions and include the question in your post. 1. What is your emotional response to this poem? 2. Diction and Tone: Focus on 3-5 word choices and try to characterize what kind of diction is being used and what these words indicate about the speaker's attitude toward his/her/their subject. 3. Identify and explain at least two metaphors or similes. Note the concrete thing and the abstract quality idea it represents. 4. In most poems, some kind of change occurs, the poet begins with one focus and turns to another. Where does the poem shift (on focus, diction/tone, kinds of images, etc.) in this poem? 5. What is the topic or issue that the poem is thinking (and feeling) about in your assigned section? How does it deal with this topic? What comment/idea does it make about the topic? Netiquette Please practice "netiquette" in all your communications. • Be kind and respectful to others. • Use full sentences. • Avoid jargon and acronyms. • Use language that supports others. Discussion Rubric To view the grading rubric for this discussion, click on the "more options" icon (3 vertical dots at the top) and then select "show rubric". Mobile App users: Click Grades, then click into the Discussion. The rubric can then be found on the Grades tab. Aim for excellence! These are the criteria for what comprises an "Excellent" rating for a discussion post: • Addresses each part of the discussion prompt(s). • Postings demonstrate reflective and critical thinking, not just recitation of information from textbook. • Makes connections to previous or current course content, or to real-life situations. • Contains insightful and thoughtful ideas, connections, or applications. • Makes reference to textbook or other sources when required. • Well-written and free of spelling and grammatical errors. • Includes well-written, thoughtful response(s) to classmates. Tips • Click on the ReplyLinks to an external site. box to post a reply to the main discussion. To respond to individual posts, click reply within each thread. • Click on the collapse and expand functions to help you "see" these threads better. You can collapse and expand individual threaded discussions by hovering over the top center of the white box containing the entire reply, and click on the blue arrow that appears. • Check back often as the discussions are dynamic! Click Discussions in the Course Navigation menu to get a quick glance at the active discussions and number of unread posts. Once inside the Discussion, click the Unread button below for a quick way to see new posts. Helpful Resources Canvas Guide Resources How do I reply to a discussion as a student? Canvas Student Guides, Discussion Topic List This video is captioned. Turn on captioning with the CC icon on the lower right of the screen. Note for Instructor: If you have set this discussion up as a group discussion, recommended for creating smaller, manageable group sets of 10-15/group, then keep the following "just-in-time" resources for the students and delete this note. If this is not a group discussion then delete this note and the "Navigation Tip" and video tutorial below. Navigation Tip: This is a group discussion, so you'll notice that the course navigation menu changes (you no longer see Modules). To get back to the course, click on the group name in the "breadcrumb" trail of links at the top, then click on the course name. Be sure to tune into this short video tutorial...it will save you time and frustration later!