'Elf on the Shelf' as breakfast-participation booster

To get more students to eat breakfast, Elkin Elementary School has launched an “Elf on the Shelf” contest.

Students who purchase either breakfast or a snack for later can receive a sticker if they are the first to whisper to cafeteria staff where “Elkie” is hiding, elkintribune.com reports. Officials say whoever finds Elkie the most number of mornings between Dec. 1 and Dec. 18 will win a prize.

“The challenging part to boosting sales is that most children want to buy unhealthy foods that our guidelines don’t allow us to sell anymore, but we have had 20 to 25 percent higher breakfast participation since the contest began,” Debbie McCoin, cafeteria manager and Child Nutrition director for Elkin City Schools, told the website.

Check out the full story via the elkintribune.com.