Before links can be created, LTI must be configured. Please reach out to your school's IT department and have an LMS admin review our guide on either, Adding zyBooks as an LTI 1.1 external tool/app or LTI 1.3 Configuration.
Linking a zyBooks assignment to an LMS is a 2 step process.
Step 1: Create a link in the LMS course.
Step 2: Configure the link to a zyBook assignment
Step 3: Instructions for students
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Creating a link in Canvas
To get started, navigate to the course in Canvas that needs to be linked.
Next, create or navigate to a module for the class.
Click on the gray "+" button.
In the "Add" dropdown box, select "Assignment" to create a link with grade passback or
"External tool" to create a link with no grade passback.
Click "Add Item".
If creating a link without grade passback, continue ahead to step 2, Configure the link.
Otherwise, click on the newly created assignment item to begin editing
Give the assignment a name and point value.
Note on how score send: zyBooks sends scores as percentages, not points. Therefore the point value in Canvas does not have to match the point value in zyBooks. Canvas will convert the score to the correct point scale.
Common error: If the point value is left at 0, students will not be able to earn a score higher than 0 because any percentage of 0 is 0.
Next, under "Submission type" select "External tool and enter the URL.
External Tool URL
LTI 1.1: https://lti.zybooks.com/v1/lti_provider
LTI 1.3: https://lti1-3.zybooks.com/v1/lti1p3/provider
For the best experience, we very highly recommend selecting to load the tool in a new tab.
Next, set a due date in Canvas.
Note on due dates: zyBooks and Canvas do NOT communicate due date information with each other. The due date set in Canvas is the last day Canvas will accept grades. The due date set in zyBooks is the last date that zyBooks will send the grade. If changes need to be made to the due date, they should be made in both Canvas and zyBook.
If you are not sure how to set/modify a zyBooks due date, please refer to our help article, How to create an assignment.
Lastly, scroll to the bottom and save all changes.
On the next page select "Load zyBooks Participation in a new window"
Next, skip ahead to step 2, Configure the link.
Creating a link in Brightspace
Begin by going to your course content. Go to Add Existing Activities and then choose External Learning Tools:
To create a link with no grade passback, select "zyBooks" from the activity list.
To create a link that supports grade passback, scroll to the bottom of the modal that appears and click "Create New LTI Link"
If creating a link without grade passback, continue ahead to step 2, Configure the link.
Otherwise, enter the title for your link. This is the title that your students will see in Brightspace.
Then enter the LTI URL below
LTI 1.1: https://lti.zybooks.com/v1/lti_provider
LTI 1.3: https://lti1-3.zybooks.com/v1/lti1p3/provider
Finally, click "Create and Insert".
Once created, you can specify a due date on the "Activity Details" section of the link.
Make sure to click "Update" to save the due date
Note on due dates: zyBooks and Brightspace do NOT communicate due date information with each other. The due date set in Brightspace is the last day Brightspace will accept grades. The due date set in zyBooks is the last date that zyBooks will send the grade. If changes need to be made to the due date, they should be made in both Brightspace and zyBook.
If you are not sure how to set/modify a zyBooks due date, please refer to our help article, How to create an assignment.
Next, skip ahead to step 2, Configure the link to a zyBook assignment.
Creating a link in Blackboard
From your course home page, select "Content" in the left menu.
Hover over the "Build Content" dropdown
If zyBooks has been added as a placement select "zyBooks" from the Build Content menu.
Otherwise, you can also select "Web Link".
Next, add the assignment name.
**If adding a web link, enter the zyBooks LTI provider URL
zyBooks LTI provider URL:
LTI 1.1: https://lti.zybooks.com/v1/lti_provider
LTI 1.3: https://lti1-3.zybooks.com/v1/lti1p3/provider
Don't forget to check the box "This link is a Tool Provider."
To create a link with no grade passback, set "Enable Evaluation" to No and continue ahead to step 2, Configure the link.
To create a link with grade passback, set "Enable Evaluation" to Yes and set a point value.
Note on how scores send: zyBooks sends scores as percentages, not points. Therefore the point value in Blackboard does not have to match the point value in zyBooks. Blackboard will convert the score to the correct point scale.
Common error: If the point value is left at 0, students will not be able to earn a score higher than 0 because any percentage of 0 is 0.
Note on due dates: zyBooks and Blackboard do NOT communicate due date information with each other. The due date set in BB is the last day BB will accept grades. The due date set in zyBooks is the last date that zyBooks will send the grade. If changes need to be made to the due date, they should be made in both BB and zyBook.
Click "Submit" at the bottom to complete the link creation.
Then skip ahead to step 2, Configure the link to a zyBook assignment.
Creating a link in Blackboard ultra
Navigate to the "Content" tab and click the circled "+" button at the top ot "Course Content"
From the options provided, select "Content Market".
The content market will open above the page. Find zyBooks in the list and hover over the "+" button in the lower corner.
This will add a zyBooks item to the course content.
It is very important to EDIT the LMS settings for the placement link BEFORE connecting it to a zyBook assignment! Otherwise, grades will not pass back.
To do so, click the three dots (...) to the right of the newly created zyBook placement link, it is usually named "zyBooks." Again do not click the link yet!
The following Blackboard Ultra properties will open.
- Change the placement link name to be the new assignment name.
- Change the grade using to Points and a non-zero points value or Percentage
- Set the Due date.
We also recommend renaming the link before configuring it. To do so, hover over the name and click the "Pencil" icon.
Click the Save button to save new settings for the placement link in Blackboard Ultra.
Next, skip ahead to step 2, Configure the link to a zyBook assignment.
Creating a link in Moodle
If necessary, in the top right corner, click the gear icon and turn editing on. Editing may already have been turned on in a previous session.
Click the "Add an activity or resource" button in the lower right corner and then choose to add an "External tool".
Fill out the "Activity name" field.
Select "Automatic, based on tool URL" as in the "Preconfigured tool" dropdown menu.
Set the Tool URL:
LTI 1.1: https://lti.zybooks.com/v1/lti_provider
Creating a link in Sakai
Navigate to the "Assignments" on the menu on the left-hand side. Then the "Add" tab at the top of the section.
Fill out all required fields.
For submission type, select "External. Tool (LTI)" from the drop-down menu. Then click "Select External Tool (LTI)" and choose zyBooks.
Make sure to enable "Allow Resubmissions" and set the "Number of resubmissions allowed" to Unlimited.
For Grading, select "Send grades to the Gradebook" and "Create new Gradebook item" to ensure scores send to the grade book. Finally, post the assignment.
Note: You will need to click the following buttons in order to be redirected to your class book so you can configure the link.
Configure the link
Click on the link that was just created and needs to be configured.
Clicking an unconfigured link in an LMS will navigate to the zyBooks library in "Link to your Learning Management System" mode.
Note: Once a link has been configured to point to a zyBook assignment or section, it can not be modified to point anywhere else. If a link is configured incorrectly, the link will need to be deleted in the LMS and a new link must be created and then configured.
Start by selecting the zyBook that should be linked to.
Note: Links can only be created in adopted class zyBooks, we do not support linking to an evaluation zyBook. Contact an account executive for help with adopting a zyBook for a class.
To create a link with grade passback, select "Create or link assignment".
Select the assignment to link to from the Assignment list or click the orange "+ Assignment" button to create a new assignment. You can review our article, How to create an assignment, if you are not sure how to create an assignment.
Note: (1) The assignment must be set to visible for the link to work properly. You can click "Show" at the bottom of an assignment to make it visible.
(2) A due date must be set to ensure that grade pass back works properly. Please be sure to set a due date for the assignment.
To create a link without grade passback, select "Link to Section". Note that in some cases, the selection might be made automatically and direct to the next screen.
Select the section link to. Note that the Table of contents can also be selected.
Once a link has been established, this selection can not be modified.
When a student clicks on a link, the following occurs:
- We check to see if the student has an account with the email address that the LMS sends.
- If the student has an account we log them in
- If the student does not have an account with that email address yet but is logged into an account with a different email address, we inform the student and ask if they would like us to merge the accounts
- If the student does not have an account and is not logged in, a new account is created and the student is logged into that account. The student is sent an email with a password in case they ever want to log into zyBooks directly.
- We check to see if the student is subscribed to the zyBook yet
- If the student is not subscribed, they are taken to the subscribe page to complete their subscription.
- If the student is subscribed, they are taken to the first section in the assignment or section that was linked to.
To learn more about how student scores are sent to the grade book, review the article, How does Assignment auto-submission work?
Additional steps for Brightspace (LTI 1.1) only
*The following steps apply to users with LTI 1.1 integration. Please note these steps are not necessary if you are using LTI 1.3. Please see the LTI 1.3 additional notes for more information on grade items
Adding the assignment to your grade book
Next, scroll down in Brightspace to the Activity Details box that appears at the bottom of the page. Under the heading "Assessment", click "Add a grade item".
Then click the new plus button that appears.
Add a name, this is the name that will appear in your gradebook, then set the point value. Brightspace typically defaults to 10. If your Brightspace assessment has a different point value than the zyBooks assignment, the score will be converted correctly.
When you are ready, click "Create" at the bottom. The create modal will close and you should see a new blue "Save" button in the Assessment box. Click "Save" to save the assessment.
That item will now be available in your grade book.
Additional steps for Brightspace (LTI 1.3) only
*The following information applies to users with LTI 1.3 integration
With LTI 1.3, once the first student submits a score, a grade item will be created with the "Maximum Points" value set to 100.
Editing grade book item
If you'd like to change the maximum points of the assignments or add a grade category, you can edit the grade item.
Instructions for students
1. Click any zyBooks link in Canvas/Moodle/Brightspace/Sakai/Blackboard.
2. Verify your email address.
3. Subscribe.
Students should be instructed to click on any of the LTI links created in the previous steps.
The first time a student clicks an LTI link, they will be sent an email asking them to verify their email address.
Once their email address has been verified, anytime a student clicks a link they will be automatically logged into a zyBooks account using the email address that the LMS provides.
If the student is not subscribed they will be taken to the "Subscribe page" where they can complete the subscription process.
If the student is subscribed, they will either be taken to the section that was linked to, or the first section in the assignment that was linked to.