According to The Elf on the Shelf: A Christmas Tradition, the night before Christmas, an elf's job comes to an end. On December 24, most Scout Elves say farewell to their families and fly back to the North Pole following Santa's sleigh.
By age eight, kids begin to acknowledge the unlikeliness of one man travelling the world in a single night. The good news? If you started the tradition of Elf on the Shelf in your household, you can likely send the elf into early retirement around your child's eighth Christmas.
Usually elves travel by more magical means, but for a more official goodbye, pack up your elf in a box, write “To the North Pole” on it, and slap every stamp you can find on there. You don't actually have to send it anywhere, just make it seem like he's going on a trip to a very cold and faraway place.
The first and most important rule is that you must NOT touch your Elf. If you do, they will lose all their magic - and nobody wants that to happen. When scout elves lose their magic, they can't go about their Christmas duties.
One philosophy provides a compelling argument about the dangers of the Elf on the Shelf, namely that it is a lie, threatens the trustworthiness of parents, ultimately encourages gullibility in children rather than critical thinking and inadvertently teaches children that their behavior should be governed by potential ...
There are just a few rules to remember! The most important—don't touch your Scout Elf, or they will lose their magic! Scout Elves can't talk, but they are great listeners. Little ones can share secrets and wishes with their elf as often as they'd like.
Are grown-ups allowed to intervene? Santa advises that no family member touch their Elf on the Shelf, but he does describe a few rare instances when an adult may use tongs or potholders to help an elf in an urgent situation.
Each morning, the elf chooses a new vantage point from which to keep an eye on the kids. The night before Christmas, the elf flies off one last time to spend the year with Santa until reappearing next season. Every night, a parent hides the elf in a new place.
Are you supposed to cut the tie between their hands? This is again a personal decision. Some people don't and some people do. The reason you would cut them would be to make your elf easier to position when placing him each night.
Be honest with your child.
Tell him/her that the Elf on the Shelf is something parents do to make the Christmas season a little more fun for kids, and you are sorry he/she is so smart to have figured it out too soon but Santa (or you) will be proud of him/her for letting siblings/friends continue believing in the elf.
What are the Rules for Elf on the Shelf? The Kids can not touch the elf. If they touch the elf then the elf can not fly back to the north pole that night. The elf does not move nor speak when the kids are awake.
The most classic way to say goodbye to your Elf (until next year) is to have them leave behind a personalized letter detailing all the fun memories they had with your kiddo through the holiday season. There are plenty of templates online for this or if you're really crafty you can make one up yourself.
How to explain why there's no Elf on the Shelf at your house. “You can just say that you don't need one because your kid is good and Santa already knows it. The elf is for the kids that need to be watched? This is the first year I didn't bring it out and my daughter hasn't asked where he is!” ~Maggie M.
Age: Although elves reach physical maturity at about the same age as Humans, the elven understanding of Adulthood goes beyond physical growth to encompass worldly experience. An elf typically claims Adulthood and an adult name around the age of 100 and can live to be 750 years old.
When does Elf on the Shelf come? The Elf on the Shelf website recommends your Elf arrive between November 24 through December 1. This is also known as Scout Elf Return week, a.k.a. the time when Santa's little helpers flee the North Pole and head out to the houses they'll be staying at until Christmas.
"It's not an overnight shift in thinking," says Laura Lamminen, Ph. D., a pediatric psychologist at Children's Health℠, "and there's no set age where children should know the truth about Santa Claus." Dr. Lamminen says each family and each child within that family will be ready to talk about Santa at different ages.
According to elf legend, the elf moves each night. Some mornings, though, kids might find themselves asking why the elf is still in its same place.
You are NOT supposed to cut that tag off. Please, for heaven's sake, don't let your elf near anything sharp. This is of the utmost importance…
Using ribbon, your elf will use the tags to put the finishing touches on the Christmas presents that they wrapped!
They have a favorite spot in your home. When your Scout Elf flies back from the North Pole and lands in the same spot, chances are it's their favorite place to sit in your home. Just like you have a favorite spot on the couch, your elf has favorite spots, too! The spot has a great vantage point.
What does your Elf on the Shelf do at night? The story goes that Santa's Scout Elves fly to the North Pole each night of December to report to Santa if your children have been behaving (or misbehaving). The elves then fly back and hide in a new spot for the children to find him the next morning.
Per official Elf on the Shelf lore, a touched Scout Elf loses their magic. Learning this fact could leave your kids spiraling down an endless rabbit hole of unwanted outcomes — ending up on the naughty list and Christmas being cancelled being their chief concerns, according to my own kids.
Elf On The Shelf Rule #2
Every morning, the Scout Elf returns to its family and is found in a new spot in your home. This means, parents – each night you'll need to come up with a new and exciting location for your mischievous Elf to appear, so the kids can find him when they wake up.
Have your elf give a final gift before heading home: a Christmas Eve box, filled with a holiday movie, popcorn, some Christmas PJs, and hot cocoa packets. The gift of a cozy evening with the family in front of the fire, watching a holiday movie — what could be a better goodbye?
Do I need one Elf per child or one per household? The choice is yours. We have included two Nice List Certificates and two Letters to Santa in each kit, as these items are personal. All the other items can be shared as a family.