updated 11/22
The Christmas season is here, and that means Santa Claus may be visiting soon. Hopefully, if you were a good little girl or boy, you would receive a Santa visit on Christmas Eve. Santa does so much for children and puts smiles on many faces. But ask yourself this question, how much do you know about Santa Claus? Sure, you know the basics, such as he lives at the North Pole, he drives a sled pulled by reindeer, but what else do you know? To find out everything you need to know about Santa Claus, check out these cute Santa Claus Facts for kids.
Who is Santa Claus?
Santa Claus is also known as St. Nickolas, Saint Nicholas, St. Nick, Father Christmas, Grandfather Frost, and Kris Kringle. Click here for a list of what children call Santa Claus in other languages/countries.
Santa Claus was born in 270 AD. That means he is over 1,000 years old. It’s the magic of Christmas that keeps him alive and well.
According to the poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas,” written by Clement Moore in 1823, Santa is described as a jolly old elf with cheeks like roses, his nose like a cherry, and a little round belly that shook when he laughed like a bowl full of jelly.
Santa has a white beard, a red suit with white cuffs, a white collar, and a black belt. He also wears a red hat with white trim and wears black boots.
According to legend Santa Claus lives at the north pole with Mrs. Claus and his elves.
It is believed that Santa’s elves work all year long in Santa’s workshop, making toys for children all over the world.
Santa Claus is believed to bring gifts to all the good boys and girls around the world while they are sleeping on Christmas Eve (December 24th).
Throughout the year Santa Claus keeps 2 lists of girls and boys, a good list and a naughty list.
Children on the naughty list are believed to receive coal for Christmas
Naughty or Nice
Aren’t sure if you’ve been a good girl or boy? How do you know if you made Santa’s naughty or nice list? This is an interesting question. It’s hard to say whether you made it on the good list or not. You can’t call Santa and ask him.
What you can do is think to yourself, have I been listening to my parents? Have I done my chores and kept my room clean? Am I trying hard at school and getting all of my work done? Have I been a kind friend and helpful to others? Do I fight a lot with my brothers and sisters?
If you answered yes, chances are you have made the good list this year. If you haven’t been listening, your room is always a mess, and you haven’t been kind, you may be in trouble. Luckily there is still time. I suggest that you start being extra good now to get on that good list.
How does Santa deliver all those presents in one night?
Santa actually has almost two days to deliver the presents. How? While in one part of the world, it is the day, in another part of the world, it is night. For example, when it is 12:30 PM (daytime) in New York, it is 1:30 AM (nighttime) in China. Santa will travel through 3 different time zones on Christmas Eve. This gives him more time to deliver presents.
Santa will visit over 90 million homes on Christmas Eve. So to deliver all the presents, how fast does his sleigh have to go? Santa’s sleigh travels at the speed of light. That is about 186,282.4 miles per second or 671 million miles per hour!
Santa has 8 reindeer Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, and Blitzen. Click here for more facts about Reindeer. Rudolph is considered Santa’s 9th reindeer.
Rudolph was added to Santa’s reindeer team on one Christmas Eve during a bad snowstorm. Santa’s 8 reindeer could not see to fly through the storm. Rudolph, with his glowing red nose, lit the way for Santa’s sleigh.
Did you know that before Rudolph led the way for Santa’s sleigh, he was made fun of by the other reindeer for being different? Rudolph was the only reindeer with a glowing nose.
So do all reindeer fly? No, in fact only Santa’s reindeer fly. Santa uses his Christmas magic to make his reindeer fly.
Santa Claus Facts for Kids
Many children leave out milk and cookies or other treats for Santa on Christmas Eve because he gets hungry on his long journey of delivering presents but did you know his reindeer get hungry too? Click here for a recipe to make magic reindeer food for Santa’s reindeer.
Have you written your letter to Santa? If so, there are different ways you can get it to him.
Did you know that if you write a letter to Santa and address it to Santa’s Workshop at the North Pole, you can bring it to the post office to be mailed out? Santa’s Christmas Magic will pick it up and get it to him. It’s true! So don’t forget to write your letter to Santa.
Do you have a fireplace? if so, you can leave your letter at the bottom of the fireplace, and Santa’s magic will pick it up. Remember, don’t go near a fireplace without your parent’s permission.
So what does Santa do when Christmas is over? First, he takes a short vacation with Mrs. Claus at the North Pole and then returns to work. Preparing his good boys and girls list and his naughty girls and boys list. He also starts getting toys ready for next Christmas. So remember to always be good because you never know when Santa’s watching.
In the 1920s, the Coca-Cola Company started placing Christmas ads with a man dressed up as Santa. In the 1930’s they started placing holiday ads with the image of Santa himself with a bundle of toys. To this day, Coca-Cola Company still runs Christmas ads featuring Santa. They place holiday images on their Coca-Cola cans during the holiday season.
5 Things you didn’t know about Santa Claus
Have you ever thought about what Santa likes to do for fun? We hear that he likes swimming, playing golf, and completing word searches and crossword puzzles.
Many children have asked when Santa’s birthday is. This is an interesting question. We have been told that his birthday is in the Spring, perhaps in March.
Do Santa and Mrs. Claus have any children of their own? Santa and Mrs. Claus don’t have any children of their own; however, they have love in their hearts to care for all the children in the world and all the elves.
Is Santa really an elf? Yes, Santa Claus is described as a jolly old elf.
Are you interested to find out what Santa’s favorite color is? We have been told that Santa loves the color blue!
Check out these Santa Claus and Christmas Jokes for Kids: Click Here
Download Santa Color Page Here
