Set up an Introductions board. Write your own personal introduction that includes information not already in your instructor bio. Direct students to begin the course by posting a paragraph of at least 100 words about themselves, their interests, educational goals and what they expect to learn from the course. Require each student to respond to posts by at least two others. People can't see each other in online formats, so personalized introductions give students a way to recognize each other by name as they communicate with each other in class discussion threads.
Assign weekly discussion topic questions based on course materials. Instruct students to respond to your discussion question and then post responses to at least two other students. Schedule deadlines for student responses to each other at least two days after they post their initial responses to your questions. The extra time allows students to read responses and think about different points of view. Encourage students to go above the two-post minimum by telling them that the more meaningful responses they post, the more points they will earn toward their final grade.
Assign each student to serve as a discussion leader for one class session. Instruct them to create their own discussion questions based on assigned materials. Require everyone else in the class to respond to discussion leader topics using the same discussion protocol for your questions. Give bonus points for well-researched and interesting topics.
Set up an Assignments board where students can post selected projects. Instruct students to comment and critique the work of at least two other students. Allow students to edit their projects based on feedback from the Assignments board before they submit them to you for grading.