One Delaware County school got a surprise last Friday morning, as a live version of the children’s Christmas toy “The Elf on the Shelf” greeted them from the school’s roof, writes Daniel Craig for PhillyVoice.

The Elf on the Shelf is a little elf doll made famous by the highly successful book. The book explains to children that the elf toy actually watches them and reports back to Santa on whether they have been naughty or nice in time for Christmas.

Kids heading to Aston Elementary School were greeted with a life-sized Elf on the Shelf sitting on top of the school. The elf was actually the school’s custodian, Chris Farmer, who donned the elf suit and perched himself on the roof of the school to give the kids a pre-Christmas reminder that Santa’s helpers are always watching.

Read more about The Elf on the Shelf at Aston Elementary School from PhillyVoice by clicking here.