4th December Santa's List Day

On the night before Christmas, 
so the old stories say, 
Saint Nicholas rides 
in a magical sleigh. 
But what is the truth, 
and what are the legends? 
Who is this giftgiver, 
and why all the presents? 

Around Christmas we spend a lot of time thinking about presents, but have you ever wondered why we give gifts? Learn about the life of Saint Nicholas and discover why he became known as one of the greatest giftgivers of all time. Told as a delightful poem by Ned Bustard.

Yes, it is time to write your letter to Santa! He needs time to organise your present. This is the day when children should start working on their holiday wish lists.

It is also the day that Santa puts together his list of naughty and nice children. Have you been naughty or nice?

The first mention of such a list occurs in the song, “Santa Claus is Coming to Town.” J. Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie wrote the fun Christmas song in 1934. The song included the lyrics, “He’s making a list, He’s checking it twice, He’s gonna find out who’s naughty or nice.”  

This used to be something the young children I teach worried about, and we had a book in the library that I cut up to make a frieze as part of our Christmas decorations, but not anymore, they feel sure that Santa will come 'no matter what'! When I read The Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree  by Gloria Houston to classes and they hear that at the time of WWI the 'naughty' children received 'lumps of coal' or a 'willow switch' they are astounded and sure that the author is wrong.

So instead this year I read some folktales about gift bringers, so that they got the idea that gift bringing has been a thing for quite some time. The legend of Santa dates all the way back to 280 A.D. This is when the real St. Nicholas was born in modern-day Turkey. Through the years, many traditions have evolved regarding St. Nick, who came to be known as Santa Claus.

We read:

• Old Befana by Tomie dePaola which tells the story of the Italian gift bringer, Befana who leaves gifts for children on the 5th January, the Eve of Epiphany and sweeps their rooms clean.

• Babushka is the Russian gift bringer who like Befana sets off to see the baby Jesus In Bethlehem with her gift of toys, but instead gives the gifts to children along the way. There are many versions of this folktale, but our school library has these:

- Babushka by Dawn Casey

- The Tale of Baboushka  by Elena Pasquali

- Babushka  by Sandra Ann Horn

- Baboushka by Arthur Scholes

• St Nicholas is the Dutch gift bringer. Children get gifts on St. Nicholas Feast Day, December 6th.

- The Legend of St Nicholas by Dandi Daley Mackall

- The Legend of St Nicholas  by Demi

- The Gift from St Nicholas  by Dorothea Lachner

- Saint Nicholas: the Story of the Real Santa Claus by Mary Joslin

• The Tomten  by Astrid Lindgren tells the tale of the Tomten who is a small gnome-like creature who takes care of a farm in Sweden during the long winter nights. In Sweden, the Tomten is the one who brings children gifts on December 24th.

If you would like to know the names of other gift bearers from around the world, this website has  a long list.

• Another folktale about Christmas and gift giving is the Mexican story  The Legend of the Poinsettia  by Tomie dePaola.

In fact it is worth exploring all the Christmas stories retold and illustrated by Tomie dePaola. It will take you to many different places.