Freebie Friday - Bear In A Chair ~ An Inexpensive Way To Do An Elf On A Shelf In Your Classroom!

Bear In A Chair, When You Just Can't Take the Pressure of the Elf!
Fern Smith's Classroom Idea - Reusing a childhood friend for when the Elf on the Shelf is just too creepy!  Bear In A Chair Is The Cheap Teacher's Elf On A Shelf!
Bear In A Chair
He Is Watching You!
So I admit, I'm cheap. I've seen all these terrific The Elf on the Shelf blog posts, Pinterest pins and IG posts. Some are funny, some are unique, some are way over the top crazy! Sadly, OR MAYBE FORTUNATELY, this was not around when my personal children were little! 
Click Here to Download this Bear in a Chair Christmas Journal!

When I originally wrote this post, my poor students had been FAIR testing, Math PM testing, Science PM testing and Playbook Pre-testing. I am all for accountability, but what a sad week these 8 & 9 YEAR OLDS were having! 

So at the end of the day I was whipping out the Winter and Christmas decorations and found this old bear from my grown up son's childhood. He ♥loved it, he loved his hat right off the bear's body! But I still put him out and stuck him at the small group table and BAM! 
I'm going to move him each day and he will serve the same purpose as Elf on the Shelf, only he's a repurposed freebie! :)
Fern Smith's Classroom Idea - Reusing a childhood friend for when the Elf on the Shelf is just too creepy!  Bear In A Chair Is The Cheap Teacher's Elf On A Shelf, Including a FREE Bear On A Chair Writing Journal for k - 3rd grade at TeacherspayTeachers.
 I've updated an old freebie, A Bear in a Chair Journal for you!

It has a cover and six styles of drawing / writing paper. Print the style of page you need, staple on the cover and you have a December writing center ready to go. Just move Bear around your room, nothing crazy, nothing to cause you more work.... and then let the students write about it! 
I would move him while they were at recess or lunch, or before school. That way if I forgot, I still had different times to catch up with VERY LITTLE EFFORT!
Fern Smith's Classroom Idea - Reusing a childhood friend for when the Elf on the Shelf is just too creepy!  Bear In A Chair Is The Cheap Teacher's Elf On A Shelf, Including a FREE Bear On A Chair Writing Journal for k - 3rd grade at TeacherspayTeachers. 
 Blackline Cover Included
Six Different Styles of Handwriting / Draw a Picture Printables
Fern Smith's Classroom Idea - Reusing a childhood friend for when the Elf on the Shelf is just too creepy!  Bear In A Chair Is The Cheap Teacher's Elf On A Shelf, Including a FREE Bear On A Chair Writing Journal for k - 3rd grade at TeacherspayTeachers.
Click here to get it for free from my TpT Store.

Some Stress Free Things Bear in a Chair can do...

* Looking into the teacher's purse
Fern Smith's Classroom Idea - Reusing a childhood friend for when the Elf on the Shelf is just too creepy!  Bear In A Chair Is The Cheap Teacher's Elf On A Shelf, Including a FREE Bear On A Chair Writing Journal for k - 3rd grade at TeacherspayTeachers.
* Writing on the white board
* Sitting at the listening center
* Working on place value
Fern Smith's Classroom Idea - Reusing a childhood friend for when the Elf on the Shelf is just too creepy!  Bear In A Chair Is The Cheap Teacher's Elf On A Shelf, Including a FREE Bear On A Chair Writing Journal for k - 3rd grade at TeacherspayTeachers.

* Working on math flash cards
* Reading in the library
* Peeking out of the closet door
* Using an iPad or class computer
* Working on Time
Fern Smith's Classroom Idea - Reusing a childhood friend for when the Elf on the Shelf is just too creepy!  Bear In A Chair Is The Cheap Teacher's Elf On A Shelf, Including a FREE Bear On A Chair Writing Journal for k - 3rd grade at TeacherspayTeachers.
* Sitting at the small group table with a guided reading book
* Sitting in the teacher's reading rocking chair or bar stool
* Look at the class next door
* Drinking the teacher's coffee, Coke or water
* Peeking into the fridge
 Fern Smith's Classroom Idea - Reusing a childhood friend for when the Elf on the Shelf is just too creepy!  Bear In A Chair Is The Cheap Teacher's Elf On A Shelf, Including a FREE Bear On A Chair Writing Journal for k - 3rd grade at TeacherspayTeachers.
* Looking out the window
* Peeking into a student's lunch box or back pack
* Looking at the fish tank, hamster or out the window
* Eating a candy cane
* The possibilities are endless, just make it EASY for the teacher!

Here is another one of my decorations for your laughing pleasure, I stuffed the poor little reindeer on the wall where the SWAT VOCABULARY GAME fly swatters are hanging...poor guy, he looks rather uncomfortable!
Fern Smith's Bear in a Chair is the Cheap Teacher's Elf on a Shelf!
Have a wonderful week friends!
Fern Smith's Classroom Idea - Reusing a childhood friend for when the Elf on the Shelf is just too creepy!  Bear In A Chair Is The Cheap Teacher's Elf On A Shelf, Including a FREE Bear On A Chair Writing Journal for k - 3rd grade at TeacherspayTeachers.



7 comments

  1. You are so very clever Fern! Kids will buy into anything if you get excited about it. We have "Hiding Hermie" at our house because didn't want to do the whole elf thing and hey, we had him already!!! Still so much fun!
    ~Christy
    Fluttering Through First Grade

    ReplyDelete
  2. I like your Bear in a Chair! Cute idea! :)

    ღDeAnne
    First Grade and Fabulous

    ReplyDelete
  3. Bear in the chair is genius! It is so much better than the creepy elf on the shelf! I will be using this in December! Thank you so much for the idea!
    Rambling About Reading

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You're so welcome. As of today, November 19th, I've updated it for your classroom!
      Have a great holiday season,
      Fern :)

      Delete
  4. Thank you for providing an alternative to that creepy elf!

    ReplyDelete

Back to Top