Are you a fan of Elf On the shelf? If so you will love this easy elf on the shelf craft idea for kids. It's always fun to make Christmas crafts and this super fun Christmas paper plate craft is bound to get the kids in the Christmas spirit.
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💖 Why You'll Love This Craft
- Magical Holiday Fun: This craft lets kids create their very own Elf on the Shelf, adding a personal touch to the Christmas season’s fun tradition.
- Perfect for Imaginary Play: Once completed, the elf can be part of holiday storytelling or used for creative play around the house.
- Great for Holiday Traditions: This craft is perfect for starting new holiday traditions, like having your elf “appear” in fun spots around the house during the season.
🎨 Supplies Needed
- Paper plates
- Tan, blue, brown, peach, and red craft paint
- Brown paper
- Cotton balls
- Scissors
- Marker
- Paint brushes
- Glue
RELATED POST: ELF CRAFT: DIY WOODEN ELF FAMILY PORTRAIT
🖌️ How To Make This Elf on the Shelf Christmas Paper Plate Craft
- Step 1: Lay out a piece of a scrap paper and plate a paper plate tan and let dry.
- Step 2: Cut out the following from a couple of white paper plates:
- -2 elf ears
- -1 large triangle and 1 longer skinnier triangle for hat
- -small circle for nose
- -elf collar
- -circle eyes with the rounded bottom cut off.
- Step 3: Then cut a 8 x 2-3” rectangle from the brown paper and cut the bottom pointed like hair.
- Step 4: Paint the cut out pieces the following colours:
-ears: tan
-hat: red
-nose: tan
-eyes: with the left side blue like pictured
- Step 5: Assemble the elf by gluing the pieces on the tan painted plate.
Dab the tip of your finger in the peach paint and dab the cheeks of the elf. Draw a smile under the nose with a marker.
- Step 6: Glue cotton balls along the bottom rim of the hat and let dry.
Now your fun elf on the shelf craft is complete. The kiddies will love this and it's so simple and easy to do both at home or in the preschool setting. Enjoy.
If you're on the lookout for the perfect Elf on the shelf idea, why not try this Elf on the shelf goodbye letter! It's a great idea and will prepare the kids to say goodbye ready for next year.
💡 Pro Tip: After morning discovery, encourage your child to write a brief thank-you or question to the elf, tapping into writing practice and deepening the interactive storytelling each night.
🧑🎨 Expert Tips
- Entry Timing: Place the Elf just before your child enters the room to heighten surprise and reinforce the notion that the elf moves only when unobserved, building excitement each morning.
- Viewpoint Variation: Vary the elf's perch by placing it on a low shelf one day and atop a high cabinet the next to keep children engaged and enhance their spatial awareness.
- Interactive Props: Place the elf with simple objects—like a tiny note, paintbrush, or candy cane—to create a mini scenario that sparks imaginative play beyond just finding the elf.
- Pattern Alternation: Rotate hiding spots between easy-to-see locations and more subtle nooks (behind books, inside a cereal box) to balance fun discovery with the challenge of a stealth hunt.
- Message Delivery: Attach short, hand-written messages to the elf—praising kindness or hinting at the day’s activity—so the craft fosters positive behavior and thoughtful anticipation.
- Sibling Collaboration: Use multiple elves or a small counter to encourage siblings to count visits together, fostering cooperation and shared excitement rather than competition.
💭 FAQs
Kids note subtle changes in location and pose, sharpening their ability to spot differences and enhancing everyday observational skills.
Searching for the new spot trains them to scan their environment closely, reinforcing careful visual comparison between yesterday’s and today’s scenes.
Yes—recalling where the elf was before and predicting its next placement exercises both short-term memory and comparative thinking in a fun context.
Changing the elf’s pose or perch teaches kids to look for small alterations, building habit of noticing and thinking about minor visual shifts.
Elf On The Shelf Craft For Kids
Equipment
- Scissors
Materials
- Paper plates
- Tan blue, brown, peach, and red craft paint
- Brown paper
- Cotton balls
- Marker
- Paint brushes
- Glue
Instructions
- Lay out a piece of a scrap paper and plate a paper plate tan and let dry.
Cut out the following from a couple of white paper plates:
- -2 elf ears
- -1 large triangle and 1 longer skinnier triangle for hat
- -small circle for the nose
- -elf collar
- -circle eyes with the rounded bottom cut off.
- Then cut an 8 x 2-3” rectangle from the brown paper and cut the bottom pointed like hair.
Paint the cut-out pieces the following colours:
- -ears: tan
- -hat: red
- -nose: tan
- -eyes: with the left side blue like pictured
- Assemble the elf by gluing the pieces on the tan painted plate. Dab the tip of your finger in the peach paint and dab the cheeks of the elf.
- Draw a smile under the nose with a marker.
- Glue cotton balls along the bottom rim of the hat and let dry.
- Now your fun elf on the shelf craft is complete. The kiddies will love this and it’s so simple and easy to do both at home or in the preschool setting. Enjoy.
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