Every December 24th, children look forward to the coming of Santa. This is because they firmly believe that Santa Claus will give out gifts to children if they behave well and avoid crying for a year. As such, Santa brings dreams and hopes to children. Therefore, adults should give children an opportunity to think about Santa’s existence by themselves.
Children may wonder where Santa comes from. Does he come flying in a sleigh with Rudolph from the North Pole, or from Santa Claus Village in Finland? However, they have no doubt about Santa’s existence. This is because children, with the pure innocence, only feel happy and satisfied by Santa’s gifts themselves. Should we tell children who believe so strongly in Santa that there is no Santa? In December 2018, for Christmas, former U.S. President Donald Trump talked to children on the phone. A 7-year-old child asked Trump about Santa’s whereabouts, and Trump said, "Do you still believe in Santa’s existence? Since you are seven years old, believing in Santa is still marginal," he said. The child panicked when he heard the answer, and American newspapers criticized Trump for hurting the child who believed in Santa. If you tell children that there is no Santa like this, it destroys their childhood innocence and arouses emptiness. Psychologist Kelly Anne Allen argued that parents should not tell children that Santa does not exist. She said, "Through Christmas customs, children make memories with their parents. Until children reach a conclusion about the existence of Santa, parents are responsible for supporting their child's imagination." She stressed the importance of keeping children's fantasies about Christmas. It is natural to think about Santa's existence as children get older. Preschoolers still find it difficult to distinguish between fairy tales and reality. According to developmental psychologist Jean Piaget, it is difficult to judge facts because children only have self-centeredness when they are from 2 to 6 years old, during which time they are going through cognitive development, and have no concept of the continuity of objects. Therefore, it is not very helpful to have to teach these children the truth. Rather, telling children that Santa does not exist can destroy their childhood innocence. In this respect, children can enjoy longer happiness from Santa's gifts in a pure state.
"You better watch out. You better not cry. Santa Claus is coming to town," are the lyrics of a Christmas carol that children sing with joy when the Christmas season approaches. Like the lyrics of the song, the children are looking forward to the day Santa comes. We should not destroy the childhood innocence of children who are waiting for Santa Claus to come. Therefore, it is not a good idea to inform preschoolers in advance of the reality that there is no Santa Claus.