School principal goes all in as ‘Elf on the Shelf’

SHELBYVILLE, Ind. (WTHR) - Children at one Indiana elementary school got the chance to have plenty of fun with their principal this week.

And her Christmas spirit has put smiles on the faces of everyone at Southwestern Elementary School.

Students have watched as first-year Principal Beth Hoeing became a human ice cream cone. They won that tasty challenge after raising 5,000 cans of food.

“It was quite a fierce competition - second grade between our two classrooms, and Mr. Robinson’s class won,” Hoeing said.

It’s one of the many things Hoeing has done for her students. She is also the “Elf on the Shelf.”

“I didn’t realize it was going to get this big,” she said.

A TikTok video of her amassed nearly 8 million views.

“Every day when they’re walking out, they say to me, ‘I can’t wait to see what the Elf is doing tomorrow,’” Hoeing said.

She has even been taped to the wall.

“We did not allot enough time for that particular one,” she said. “And we’re not able to put enough tape on me to hold me to the wall in time for arrival, so there are a couple of chairs underneath me. But that one was a lot of fun.”

For Hoeing, it’s all about giving back to her students.

“And for them to have something to look forward to each and every day when they come to school, it’s been something that’s been very magical,” she said.