The santa thread

[Kahuna Burger]

So there was an article in the paper yesterday that I can only describe as "Orwellian". The bare bones, translated from Newspeak, were pretty simple. A Dallas music teacher, in context unexplained, told some first graders that Santa is just a story. Kids asked parents about it, parents threw fit, school told kids teacher was just kidding.

But it was written as "the teacher lied to the kids, falsly denying Santa, the school reassured them of the truth...." WTF???? If it had been an op ed, it might be funny, but this was a news peice in the front section. Any kid old enough to read it on their own has probably worked it out by now, so what is the point?

Addmittedly, I don't get the whole "lying about Santa" thing to begin with, as I never believed in a literal Santa. but this still seems to be taking it a bit far.

For the non-americans (and non-christians) on the board, I'm curious. Is the Santa phenomoenon universal in the celebration of christmas, or is he more seen as a fun story kids aren't expected to literally believe, ala Frosty? And are there any traditions in non-christmas celebrators where parents try to keep kids convinced of something they know to be false?

(PS, I have joy and imagination and wonder and fun and the christmas spirit just fine thank you, I just never happened to believe in a literal reverse-burgler who would break into my house on christmas eve. )

 

[Warrior Poet]

Without knowing the context it's hard to know how to respond about the teacher, though my initial inclination is that it's not the teacher's job to clarify that particular myth, but should be the parent's job. I'd say the teacher perhaps should have said something along the lines of, "I'm not an expert, so you should ask your parents. In the meantime, practice your damn scales, you little ingrates!"

Perhaps I'm not cut out for teaching.

That being said, I also think the other side of this is the modern phenomenon of Protect Children At All Costs And Preserve Their Egos So That They Don't Ever Ever Ever Get Upset And Will Live Perfect Lives And Always Be Happy Forever And Ever. Which strikes me as poor parenting.

The right course of action was probably somewhere in the middle: teacher says "Go ask your mom and/or dad," mom and/or dad say, "Santa Claus is real and if you ever believe otherwise your pets will die mysterious deaths," or "Santa Claus is a story told to invoke the spirit of Christmas and not the sort of claptrap rational people believe in," or "Santa Claus is as real as you need him to be in the stage of life you are in, and just because something is mythological doesn't mean it isn't true, and also means you don't necessarily have to interpret it according to the strictest terms."

Then again, perhaps I'm also not cut out for parenting.

Warrior Poet

 

[Kahuna Burger]

That being said, I also think the other side of this is the modern phenomenon of Protect Children At All Costs And Preserve Their Egos So That They Don't Ever Ever Ever Get Upset And Will Live Perfect Lives And Always Be Happy Forever And Ever. Which strikes me as poor parenting.

hrm, I don't see anything "modern" about parents getting mad at schools for daring to give kids facts that contriticted their "parenting". Fairly traditional response to sex ed or (in some areas) evolution, for instance.

That aside, yeah, I don't know the context. If one kid was being picked on for not believing, I would have a hard time staying neutral. If a kid just brought it up out of the blue, I'd probably avoid the question and point out that there were a lot of fun Santa songs.

 

[Warrior Poet]

hrm, I don't see anything "modern" about parents getting mad at schools for daring to give kids facts that contriticted their "parenting".

I say modern because it's the only frame of reference I have (perhaps I should have said "contemporary"). I'm sure it's happened before, it's just that I can only speak to it in the context of my current experience. I'm thinking specifically of the Parents Who Threw A Fit When They Discovered The Chicago Coffee Shop Was Unwilling To Put Up With Their Spawn's Deplorable Behavior, Or At Least Unwilling To Let The Lack Of Parenting Go Unnoticed that was a recent topic of discussion here.

Warrior Poet

 

[Kahuna Burger]

I say modern because it's the only frame of reference I have (perhaps I should have said "contemporary"). I'm sure it's happened before, it's just that I can only speak to it in the context of my current experience. I'm thinking specifically of the Parents Who Threw A Fit When They Discovered The Chicago Coffee Shop Was Unwilling To Put Up With Their Spawn's Deplorable Behavior, Or At Least Unwilling To Let The Lack Of Parenting Go Unnoticed that was a recent topic of discussion here.

Warrior Poet

um yeah, that discussion not such a cut and dried issue with me. I more saw The Coffee Shop Who Thinks Infants Making Noise Is Screaming And Acted Like An Internet Troll In Their Letter Thus Making Me Skeptical Of All Their Claims.

 

[Arnwyn]

But it was written as "the teacher lied to the kids, falsly denying Santa, the school reassured them of the truth...." WTF???? If it had been an op ed, it might be funny, but this was a news peice in the front section. Any kid old enough to read it on their own has probably worked it out by now, so what is the point?

That's creepy and frightening... and one of the worst bits of journalism I've heard about in a while.

One heck of an irresponsible paper.

 

[Kahuna Burger]

That's creepy and frightening... and one of the worst bits of journalism I've heard about in a while.

One heck of an irresponsible paper.

well, its not a paper I held a great deal of respect for before this, but definitly part of a downward slide... :\

 

[fett527]

well, its not a paper I held a great deal of respect for before this, but definitly part of a downward slide... :\

got a link?

--Curious Spikey

 

[devilbat]

For the non-americans (and non-christians) on the board, I'm curious. Is the Santa phenomoenon universal in the celebration of christmas, or is he more seen as a fun story kids aren't expected to literally believe, ala Frosty? And are there any traditions in non-christmas celebrators where parents try to keep kids convinced of something they know to be false?

While I fit both the criteria you ask for, I'm going to ignore the religious aspect of the question. Sorry Kahuna, but I've seen too many threads shutdown over religious statements that you seem to get involved with.

With regards to the Santa phenomenon, I can tell you it is not universal. I don't EXPECT my children to believe in him, but I do enjoy every second of the awe, wonder and innocence that the legend inspires within my kids. Unfortunately, they grow up too quickly, and by the time they are in kindergarten, the illusion is generally over.

 

[Kahuna Burger]

While I fit both the criteria you ask for, I'm going to ignore the religious aspect of the question. Sorry Kahuna, but I've seen too many threads shutdown over religious statements that you seem to get involved with.

umm..... ok.....