How to Annotate a PDF in an Online Class: Step-by-Step Guide

To annotate a PDF in an online class, load it onto a shared whiteboard, mark it up live in two colours while you explain, give students the pen so they answer on the same page, and download the annotated pages as a PDF afterwards. It turns a passive screen share into a guided explanation.

Most teachers already have the material they need: worksheets, past papers, textbook pages and handouts saved as PDFs. The problem in an online class is that screen sharing a PDF is passive. Students watch you scroll, and nobody can point at anything. Putting the PDF on a whiteboard and writing on it live turns the same file into a guided explanation.

This guide walks through the whole process in Educastic, from getting the file onto the board to keeping the marked-up pages.

Why annotate a PDF instead of screen sharing?

Annotating a PDF beats screen sharing because you and your students can write on the page instead of only looking at it. When the PDF sits on the board you can circle the key word in a question, underline the step where students usually slip and write the correct version right beside it. Students see where your attention goes, in the order you think, which is exactly what they miss in a shared screen.

There is a second benefit: students can write on the same page. That is the difference between a lecture about a worksheet and a worksheet the class actually completes together.

How do you upload a PDF to the whiteboard?

Educastic loads a PDF onto the board in four ways: upload from your computer, import from cloud storage, open from My Library or, for images, drag and drop.

1. Upload it from your computer. PDFs open directly on the board, ready to annotate.
2. Import it from cloud storage. Educastic imports files from Google Drive, Dropbox and OneDrive, so you do not need to download a file first.
3. Open it from My Library. Keep the files you use often in your personal My Library and open them onto the board in a couple of clicks.
4. Drag and drop images. For a photo of a textbook page or a scanned diagram, drag the image straight onto the board.

Word and other documents convert to PDF on upload, so a worksheet you wrote in a word processor works the same way as a PDF.

Tip: load your files before the class starts. Searching folders while students wait is the fastest way to lose the first five minutes.

How do you annotate a PDF in a live class?

Annotate a PDF in a live class by picking two colours, giving each one a job and saying out loud why you make every mark. A simple system that works in most subjects:

Sticking to the same system every lesson means students learn to read your annotations at a glance. Use the highlighter for key terms, the pen for working and text boxes when you want a neat, typed note. Zoom in on the part of the page you are explaining so it is readable on a small screen, then zoom out to show the whole page again.

Educastic's laser pointer is useful when you want to point without leaving marks. Its trail fades, so the page stays clean.

How can students write on the same PDF?

Students write on the same PDF when the teacher gives them annotation access, and in Educastic the teacher can give or take back that access per student at any time. This is where an annotated PDF becomes an activity.

• One student solves, the class watches. Give one student the pen for question 3 and ask them to think out loud.
• Everyone answers in their own colour. Give the group access and ask each student to pick a colour, then compare answers on the same page.
• Students mark your work. Write an answer with a deliberate error and ask a student to find and fix it.

When it is time to explain again, take the pen back so the page stays readable.

How should you handle long documents?

Split long documents across board tabs, one section per tab. A ten-page past paper does not need to live on one board. Put each section in its own tab: the reading passage in one, questions 1 to 5 in the next and the extension task in a third. Tabs keep each page uncluttered and make it easy to jump back when a student asks about an earlier question.

How do students keep the annotated pages?

Students keep the annotated pages by downloading the Educastic session's resources as a PDF at the end of class. That gives them the marked-up worksheet with every correction and note from class, which is far more useful for revision than a clean copy.

If you record the session, students can also replay the explanation of each question later.

What mistakes should you avoid when annotating PDFs?

The most common mistakes are writing too small, using too many colours and keeping the pen to yourself.

1. Writing too small. Zoom in before you annotate a dense page.
2. Using too many colours. Two colours plus a highlighter is enough.
3. Annotating in silence. Say what you are circling and why.
4. Keeping the pen to yourself. Hand it to a student at least once per page.
5. Uploading the whole book. Split long files into the pages you will actually use.

For more ideas on what students can do on a shared page, see 12 interactive whiteboard activities for your online class.

Frequently asked questions

Can I annotate a Word document in an online class? Yes. Word and other documents convert to PDF on upload, and you annotate them like any PDF.

Can I load files from Google Drive? Yes. Educastic imports files from Google Drive, Dropbox and OneDrive.

Can students write on the PDF too? Yes. In Educastic, the teacher gives annotation access to individual students and can take it back at any time.

How do students keep the annotated worksheet? By downloading the Educastic session's resources as a PDF at the end of the class.

Does PDF annotation cost extra? No. Educastic includes all of its teaching features in the free version.

Annotate your next worksheet live

Upload a worksheet you already use to the Educastic online whiteboard, mark it up in two colours and let a student finish the last question.

Upload a worksheet free