Playing Santa – a guide for parents

“Ho! Ho! Ho! Merry Christmas!” are the memorable lines uttered by Santas everywhere. However, playing Santa can be a daunting event for parents and children. For the grown ups there is the worry about what to say, and how to act around young children who may be meeting Santa for the first time. For the children, there may be nothing more terrifying than being placed on the lap of a man dressed in red and white wearing an enormous beard. So how do you get playing Santa right with kids?

For babies, who will have a limited understanding of Christmas and Santa Claus, it is probably simpler to simply dress up and take a photo of your baby sitting on Santa’s lap. If your baby gets upset then Santa can easily make a swift exit.

A great way to start with small children, is to read books with them about Santa. Local libraries have wonderful books that you can borrow freely. Simple stories help little kids develop a basic understanding of who Santa is and why he is special. You can also write letters to give to Santa when you meet him, telling him what your child would like for Christmas, and send a reply from Santa to your child. By involving them in simple preparation it will help them engage with the idea of actually meeting him.