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Drawing on Visual Motor Downloads

Mark Up PDF XodoI received this question from a customer and thought others may benefit from the response so I am posting it here:

Question:  I love your products and have enjoyed using them. I would like to use your products in the digital form for on-screen use. Prior to the change in Adobe Acrobat ( in the past 3-5 months…?) I was able to use the mazes and other e-products with students on screen. There were different tools that allowed highlighting and/or drawing on screen, but NOW I am unable to do that.   I have looked at upgrading to the Adobe DC pro, but I’m not sure if that will help. Do you know?

Answer:  Here are a few suggestions that may help your situation if you are using a Windows computer.

There is a great, free app for Windows called Xodo PDF reader.  Not only will it let you draw on PDFs but you can also type and sign documents.  Download the app here.

Step 1:  Open the app on your computer once downloaded.  Browse and find your PDF file that you would like to mark up.

Step 2:  Once the file is open, click on the lines in the upper right hand corner.  Click on App Commands.  A toolbar will open at the top.  Hit edit.

Step 3:  Choose the tools you would like to edit the document with.  The paintbrush works well for a maze/ visual motor type product for free drawing.  It even works on touch screen computers essentially turning the Your Therapy Source pdf documents into an electronic document that you can draw on using your finger or a stylus.

Step 4:  If you want, you can save the document that is marked up or print it to keep a record of progress.  PRETTY COOL if you ask me!!!

Mark Up PDF Snip ToolAnother option is to just use  the Snipping tool on your Windows computer.  Open up the PDF you want to draw on.  Type in Snipping Tool in your search box on your computer.  This is a desktop app that is usually preinstalled on Windows.  Once it opens, click on New Snip.  Create a box around the picture.  Now that page of the PDF is open and you can draw on it using the pen tool.  You can also save or print this document.

Comparing the Xodo versus the Snipping Tool: The Xodo PDF Reader and Editor is much better to use since you can mark up the whole file at one time versus the Snipping tool where you have to go one page at a time.  Sometimes having the student complete the visual motor activity on the computer screen first adds novelty and improves motivation.  Then print out the pages to practice transferring the skills to pencil and paper.  In my opinion, the Xodo PDF Reader and Editor is definitely a great option to mark up PDFs for free.

Would love to hear you feedback if you try either of these methods or if you use a different application to mark up PDFs on screen.

Looking for visual motor downloads to try it out with?  We have a huge collection here https://www.yourtherapysource.com/visualdownloads.html