how to make a Discussion optional for students

[BlakelyBrown2]

There were three required Discussions in my class. Some students missed the deadline for completing one or more of these discussions. Thus, I want to create a 4th discussion that is optional for students to complete. The student who would likely opt in to complete Discussion 4 would be a student who recieved a "0" or low grade for an earlier discussion.

Question: How do I set this up on Canvas, in terms of making this an optional assignment to complete that would count toward the final grade?

[stimme]

The simplest approach might be to have discussion 4 be graded with 0 points possible. Points given will look and function like extra credit, raising the total points earned but not the total points possible. The description you give - the assignment is optional and open to everyone - sounds like extra credit to me. You can even give zeroes to people who don't opt in and it will not be a penalty mathematically.