I tried to do elf on the shelf with my boys once. I forgot to move him on day three. And day six. And kind of just gave up after day 12.
It was at the time when I only had one son, and he wasn’t that into it. He was more excited about punching a prize in this DIY advent calendar and listening to our Christmas playlist. And I didn’t love the whole elf watching you so stick make sure to be on your best behavior thing.
I did throw him a goodbye party where the elf left him this cute free printable elf on the shelf goodbye letter along with a fun Christmas party setup. That was easily the best part of elf on the shelf for my family.
But I know a lot of people absolutely love it. And I’ve seen some ridiculously fun activities that people do during elf season, so I thought I could at least provide some different elf notes that people can use with their own elf antics throughout the Christmas season!
So here you go – 32 different printable card and ideas to use for some holiday fun. While the elf may not be part of my family’s Christmas magic, it doesn’t mean he can’t be part of yours! So grab your scout elf (or whatever your elf’s name is), print out the printable PDF at the bottom of this post, and move that cute elf of yours from now until Christmas Eve!
Printable Elf on the Shelf Notes
If you need ideas for your returning elf or a new elf this year, these elf on the shelf printables are perfect! There are 32 different cards, and I’ve included ideas below to go along with each of the cards!
Hopefully there are some new ideas on the printable cards you can use this year, next year, and every year you continue the elf on the shelf tradition!
Here are a few pictures of ways you could use these little notes with our elf on the shelf fun! Make sure to keep reading for even more easy ideas!
Elf on the Shelf Ideas
I’ve included creative ideas below that would work with these free printable! Kids will have so much fun finding the elf each day and seeing what they’ve been up to! And these printable letters are a fun way to to tell the kids what their adorable elf did without having to create anything new! I’ve included images of the free printable elf notes below, but I highly recommend downloading the actual PDF file at the bottom of this post for the best quality printing rather than printing out these images. The next set of cards have some fun good deeds the kids can do on them along with a few reminders not to end up on the naughty list! I’m always a fan of encouraging kids to help others however they can! These next cards are similar to the ones above where they have some ideas for good deeds, ideas for Christmas activities for the entire family, and some cards just to put with an elf on the shelf when you move it to a new location.
This last set of cards are mostly countdown cards along with a few others that can be used in the days leading up to the elf’s return to the North Pole!
Expert Tips
Print these cards on whitecard stock at the beginning of the elf season then use them anytime you need an idea or if you have other ideas to use, you can use those and just keep these for last minute moments! Laminate the cards so that you can use them again next year! I don’t recommend using them all over again but you could definitely use some of them without the kids caring, especially if it’s the ones bringing them a special treat! Set a reminder on your phone before going to bed to help you remember to move the elf. Or in the morning if you get up before the kids and do it then. Don’t make a huge mess that you have to clean up. You have enough to do during the Christmas season without having to clean up messes from a mischievous elf.
More Christmas Printables
If you’re looking for fun kids activities for the holidays, these Christmas games will be perfect!
Christmas bingo – free printable Christmas bingo cards full of holiday images!Christmas coloring pages – a set of 10 free printable coloring pages with Christmas designs! Christmas matching game – a go fish style game that’s free to print and Christmas themed!Christmas mad libs – a variety of different stories with fill in the blanks to make silly stories!Christmas i spy – a free hidden pictures printable with a Christmas theme!
Download the Printable Elf Notes
Enter your first name and email address in the form below to get the printable PDF. You will receive a link to download the PDF to your email within minutes. If you would rather not provide your email, you can purchase a copy in my shop here. The PDF will include:
Four sheets of elf on the shelf printable notes (8 to a page)Use policy statement – everything is personal use only
If you do not immediately receive the email, make sure to check your promotions, spam, and junk folders! If you do not see the form below, click here to get to it.
