Skip to main content
The Materials tab shows everything Polya has read for a course and lets you change it. From here you set the course’s study mode, add a course website, upload your own PDFs and transcripts, and check Canvas or the website for new materials. To open it, open the course and select Materials. The page is titled Course materials & policy and shows how many sources are ready, like 38 of 40 sources ready. The Materials tab has these sections, from top to bottom:

​
See what Polya is studying

Under Everything Polya is studying, each item shows a type label and its status. The type label tells you what kind of item it is, such as pdf, html for a web page, or video for captions from a lecture video. Uploaded transcripts show their format, like vtt or srt.
You can’t remove or rename a single item yet. To remove everything Polya brought in for a course, remove the course.

​
Upload your own files

Add what isn’t in Canvas or on the class website, like textbook chapters, your notes, practice exams, or formula sheets. You can also upload lecture transcripts, so Polya can point to the moment something was said.
1

Find the upload section

On the course’s Materials tab, find Upload PDFs or transcripts.
2

Choose files

Select Choose files and pick one or more files.While it works, the button reads Adding…, or Adding 2 of 5… for several files.
3

Wait for them to be ready

Polya confirms what it added, for example Added 5 files. They’re being prepared and will appear below shortly. A single transcript is usually ready right away.

​
What you can upload

Polya names each upload after its file name. If a file is too big, upload only the chapters or pages you need.
If you upload an answer key, put “solutions” or “answers” in its file name. Polya then hides it in Practice mode.

​
Upload messages

​
Add or check a course website

If the course doesn’t have a website in Polya yet, the Course website section shows Add your course website. Paste the address and select Add website. For details on what Polya reads, see Add a course website. If the course already has a website, the section shows Studying your course website with a link to the site.

​
Check for updates

Polya can look for new or changed materials and bring them in.
  • For a course from Canvas, select Check for updates next to Everything Polya is studying. The button reads Checking Canvas… while it works.
  • For a course website, select Check for updates in the Course website section. The button reads Checking the website… while it works.
When it’s done, Polya shows what it found, for example Found 3 updates in Canvas. They’ll show up here as they’re ready. or Everything is already up to date. Items that changed are read again, and items that couldn’t be read before are tried again. Files you uploaded aren’t part of this check. Polya also checks a course website on its own about once a day for new items. It doesn’t check Canvas on its own.
If you brought the course in with the Scope extension and never connected a Canvas access token, Check for updates says Connect your Canvas first to check for updates. Instead, open the course in Canvas and choose Study in Polya in the Scope extension again. See Add a course with the Scope extension.

​
Check-yourself record

After you finish a Check yourself question in chat, the Materials tab shows a Check-yourself record. It lists each check’s topic with its result: Got it, Close, or Not yet. The heading shows how many you solved on your own, like 4 of 6 solved on your own. To learn more, see Check yourself.

​
Remove a course

Removing a course deletes everything Polya brought in for it, along with its conversations, study mode, exams, and practice history. It doesn’t change anything in Canvas.
1

Go to Your courses

Select My courses in the sidebar.
2

Open the course menu

On the course’s card, select the Course options menu (the three dots at the top right).
3

Delete the course

Select Delete course. Polya asks whether to remove the course and everything imported for it. Select Delete to confirm, or Cancel to keep it.
Removing a course can’t be undone. To study it again, add it again. Polya reads all its materials from scratch, and your old conversations and practice history don’t come back.

​
Storage

Files you bring into Polya count toward your Scope account’s storage, which Polya shares with Lectra. If your storage is full, Polya can’t add more files and shows Couldn’t import. See Storage is full.

Add a course

Bring in a course from Canvas or a website.

Prepare for an exam

Mark formula sheets and past exams for an exam.