The Elf Has Arrived!

Two days ago an elf came to our classroom!  When I walked in the classroom it was sitting right on top of the Smartboard with a note saying not to touch him, and that there was a book and letter for us somewhere in the room.

The kids set off (with my permission of course) to find that book and letter!  Lucky for me, I just so happened to bring my GO PRO camera in that morning, and had it recording as the kids walked in the room! I was able to catch all of the excitement!  This will be GREAT for our end of the year DVD with classroom happenings throughout the year!

Students took pictures of the elf, and got some good practice editing their pictures on their iPad.  (Each student in my 2nd and 3rd combo class has an iPad.)

The next day students found the elf in a tree that was decorated by the elf with this note:

 The next thing we needed to do was decide on a name for our elf.  Since students already had brainstormed some possible names the day before, they were ready to write their favorite name on a big piece of chart paper.  Next, I went to Google Drive and created a "form."  If you haven't created a form yet you've got to try it out!  This was my first Google form to ever create, and it was super easy!  Just go to your Google docs, click on New File, and select a form.  I chose a multiple choice format, and a cute holiday theme.  (So easy, and it looks so professional!)

When I created my form, I didn't realize I could go in and change the font where it says Sample Question 2.  I finally figured out that you could have the people you send it to write their name there, so you can see who submitted which elf name.  (Great to do in case any of your students voted twice - which mine did!)  Besides emailing the form to each of my students, it is fun to email friends, my husband, the principal, school secretary, and teacher buddies to participate in the vote too.  It puts a smile on their face for sure!

Well, it looks like Elfis is the name of our elf, so I am off to find a little guitar ornament that Elfis can hold tomorrow.  Stay tuned for more pictures of our new class elf!  My friend Sandy who teaches next door had a girl elf show up in her classroom on the same day as our elf arrived. (Can you believe that?!!)  We have had a blast running back and forth between each other's classrooms checking out what the elves are up to. 


If you are thinking about having an "Elf on a Shelf" in your classroom, here are some great resources you might want to check out!

Elf on a Shelf Ideas on Pinterest

Elf on a Classroom Shelf  By EduKate and Inspire
I LOVE this resource!  I used it to make journals for each student to record the elf adventures in our classroom.  I have never seen my students so motivated to write each morning!

I am getting quite attached to this little guy, and so are my students!  December will be a fun month at school!

I am excited to link up with the Technology Tailgate Blog on this Techie Tuesday Link Up day.  Check it out for lots of great resources.