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Original poster

Doing letter to Father Christmas at school

21 replies

Scout2016 · 08/12/2021 20:34

At bedtime my 5 year old has asked if I want to know what she has put her "school letter to Santa."
Today, with just over a week to go until they break up, and in a very low income area where many will be saving up for gifts, or using charities for support, school have decided it would be a good idea to get the kids to do a letter to Father Christmas.
And not tell us either that they have done it or what they have put in it.
I now recall they did it last year too but I let it go and luckily my DD asked for the same thing. She got a reply "from Santa" clearly written by a year 6, but was too young to wonder why he had replied twice (we had done the post office one already.)
This time she has asked for different things.
I have told her it's too late and cheeky to send a second letter but what the heck are school thinking?
Not to mention families who don't celebrate Christmas, or don't "do" Father Christmas.

OP posts:
OnceuponaRainbow18 · 08/12/2021 20:40

Yea defo don’t think these things should be done at school.

CrumpledCrumpet · 08/12/2021 20:41

I was narked enough that my school were doing elf on the shelf?- writing letters to Santa is not on.

Newuser82 · 08/12/2021 20:43

That’s ridiculous! My two year old came out of nursery the other day with a letter to santa asking for a electric quad bike 😕. I’ve got his presents all sorted so hoping he forgets about it but at age 5 obviously that won’t happen so there may be a lot of disappointed kids. Don’t think the school has thought this through properly!

Theimpossiblegirl · 08/12/2021 20:45

It's very insensitive. I'm a primary teacher and wouldn't do it. Some people are so out of touch.

FlickyCrumble · 08/12/2021 20:47

There is another thread on this just last week and someone there talked about year 4 kids so 8/9 year olds replying to the letters as if they were Santa. What possessed the teachers? They did it in year 2 for us but my son came home and said the teacher didn’t post the letters he could see they were in the bin!!

Original poster
Scout2016 · 08/12/2021 20:55

Yeah I am going to raise it. I am mumsnet fumin'. The sector I work in staff take presents collected by a local radio station out to families on their caseloadswho are struggling, to make sure they get a present. Then schools do something daft like this.

OP posts:
LynetteScavo · 08/12/2021 21:03

Please raise it.

The year my DD I nursery we went away for Christmas. While tucking her into bed on Christmas Eve (in the middle of nowhere) she said "I can't wait to ride my Iggle Piggle bike in the morning" I questioned her and she explained she'd written to Father Christmas at nursery, asking for an Iggle Piggle bike. Obviously there was no bike in the morning. If we'd been at home I'd have probably imploded trying to find somewhere still open selling bikes.

I did raise it with her Reception teacher- saying if she wrote a letter in school could I please see it.

DD didn't actually care about the bike- although she didn't have much in the way of presents that year, she was surrounded by family. I can imagine it must be awful if a child has no extended family to see and doesn't get the gift they might be hoping for.

olivesnutsandcheeseplease · 08/12/2021 21:12

That's awful. I also can't understand why a year 5/6 child would do the replies. My year 5 DS firmly believes in Santa so this would totally ruin it for him.

Tal45 · 08/12/2021 21:14

The whole thing sounds really poorly thought out. Is it a young teacher with no children?

BitterTits · 08/12/2021 21:15

I'd be very pissed off with my year 6 writing replies. It's up to parents when they let their DCs in on the secret.

Akire · 08/12/2021 21:18

It’s very lazy literacy activity with scope for so much harm. Plenty of other nice things to write about. The whole point is that you know what they want! Plenty of year 6 kids will be home or playground joking about writing the return letters too. Year 5 certainly have some believers.

Why can’t they just write a story to Santa instead.

NellieBertram · 08/12/2021 21:20

This wouldn't bother me at all.

Surely you just say - the school letter was just a fun activity, your teacher wanted you to practise writing a letter. We already sent the real letter to Santa at home, remember?

NellieBertram · 08/12/2021 21:22

I mean, if they're getting older children to write replies back then it is clearly just a school activity and they aren't telling the children it is really going to Santa.

Newuser82 · 08/12/2021 21:34

A pug! Although may be a bit clingy and needy?

Newuser82 · 08/12/2021 21:34

@Newuser82

A pug! Although may be a bit clingy and needy?
Sorry, totally wrong thread 😂🙈
Original poster
Scout2016 · 08/12/2021 21:38

I think teacher is maybe 30s-early 40s. Don't know if he has kids but last year's teacher does.
I don't know how it was explained to the kids but my DD has definitely come home thinking she had asked THE Father Christmas for a toy badger. And she has mentioned several times since last Christmas how last year he brought the "wrong" colour cat, because at school she asked for a brown one.
And yes, we do tell her not to act spoilt, just as we've said you can't send another letter asking for more stuff. But in her head she asked for a brown cat from Father Christmas and she wonders why he decided to get a different colour.

OP posts:
Original poster
Scout2016 · 08/12/2021 21:41

@Newuser82 I love it when that happens, always intriguing!

OP posts:
NellieBertram · 08/12/2021 21:43

@Scout2016

I think teacher is maybe 30s-early 40s. Don't know if he has kids but last year's teacher does. I don't know how it was explained to the kids but my DD has definitely come home thinking she had asked THE Father Christmas for a toy badger. And she has mentioned several times since last Christmas how last year he brought the "wrong" colour cat, because at school she asked for a brown one. And yes, we do tell her not to act spoilt, just as we've said you can't send another letter asking for more stuff. But in her head she asked for a brown cat from Father Christmas and she wonders why he decided to get a different colour.
Why haven't you just explained that the school letter is just pretend to practice letter writing and it never got sent to Santa? Doesn't she remember she already sent a letter with you?
ballsdeep · 08/12/2021 21:46

@NellieBertram

This wouldn't bother me at all.

Surely you just say - the school letter was just a fun activity, your teacher wanted you to practise writing a letter. We already sent the real letter to Santa at home, remember?

You would think this, but clearly from the replies on this thread ,not. I agree with you Nellie, letters to Santa are.always going to take place, either with a teacher or independently.
Rizzoli123 · 08/12/2021 22:28

My son has always done a letter to santa through school. His teacher this year has photographed it so we can what he has asked for. He has also dropped some big hints about what he has put on the letter.

Explosivefarts · 08/12/2021 22:30

I couldn’t be annoyed about this . My kids always write letters to Santa at school .

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