Unravelling the secrets of Santa Claus with Carrigaline Junior Infants
Why does Santa live at the North Pole? How does he fit all those presents onto his sleigh? And how on earth does he get the reindeer to fly? These and many other Christmas mysteries are solved today by the Junior Infants of Gaelscoil Charraig Uí Leighin in Carrigaline, Co Cork. reports
Why does Santa live at the North Pole?
“Cos there’s snow there and it never melts.”
“Because it’s so sunny here. Santa doesn’t like the sun. He can’t stand the bright.”
“Cos he doesn’t like how it’s so hot in Carrigaline.”
“I live in Carrigaline, but Santa doesn’t! That’s because he likes watching all the people from the North Pole. His elves are watching us at night while Santa is asleep. That’s why he can’t live in Carrigaline.”
“Cos he doesn’t like people seeing him. No one knows what presents he’s making for all the different people.”
“Because people aren’t allowed to see Santa, so he has to live somewhere secret.”
“He lives in the North Pole because the reindeer can fly so he can go wherever he wants. He doesn’t live in Carrigaline because we have the summer here and he likes making lots of presents.”
How does Santa fit all those presents into the sleigh?
“The elves make the wrapping. Then Santa gets a big ginormous bag and puts that on the sleigh. It’s a very fat bag and that’s how all the presents fit in.”
“He has a big bag in there. He can do it because his sleigh is magic.”
“The elves pack them for him. They put them in very carefully in case anything breaks and then he goes out.”
How does Santa manage to deliver presents to every single good child in the world on Christmas Eve?
“He goes on the sleigh and the reindeers drive the sleigh. They’re kind of fast and kind of slow - and then he goes down the chimney.”
“Because when we’re asleep, Africa is awake. So Santa goes to Ireland while we’re asleep. Then he goes to Africa when they’re asleep. He goes very fast - I don’t know how fast.”
“There’s all different times in the world, like in Africa it is the morning and here it’s the night. That’s how he gets around - because of the different times.”
Did you ever catch Santa putting out your presents?
“I saw Santa one time. He was putting presents under my Christmas tree in the corner of my front room. He had a white beard and a red coat and a red pants and a black belt and black boots.
I said: ‘Hi Santa, did you like my letter?’ He said ‘yes’ and he gave me a present and told me to go back to bed and open it in bed. The present was a goo- gun with slime so I slimed all my room.”
“One Christmas night we left our computer on by accident and it took a picture of Santa’s boot! He was kneeling down putting out our presents. We printed out the picture. We were very excited!”
“Once I woke up in the middle of the night. I peeped through the door and Santa was in the front room - that’s the room at the front, with the TV and the two couches. He didn’t notice, and I had a good peep and then I went back to sleep.”
“I never saw him. He’s special and children can see him if they peep in the door, but I never saw him.”
“I always hide and I always see him. I hide under the table once and I saw Santa. He came down the chimney and he saw me and he said, ‘Merry Christmas’. He gave me chocolate. We had a party then, me and Santa.”
“I saw Santa because my Daddy fell asleep on the couch and Santa took selfies of my Daddy asleep. Santa was laughing and he took selfies on the phone.”
“Once I saw him. He was putting out a castle for my baby brother. I said ‘Hello, Santa,’ and he said ‘Ho Ho Ho!’ I stayed with Santa until he went away. I got presents for my baby brother and my big brother and I got a present for me.”
“I heard Santa one time, and I crept down and I saw him putting out presents and going back up the chimney. He jumped up, but his bag fell in the fireplace, so he jumped upside down and grabbed the bag and went back up the chimney.”
What will Santa and his reindeer get to eat at your house this year?
“The reindeer get carrots and a bit of porridge. I’ll give Santa some mince pies and a drink of beer.”
“In my house Santa gets a mince pie and the reindeer get tomatoes and carrots.”
“Carrots for the reindeer, and an apple pie and some cookies and a drink of milk for Santa.”
What do you hope Santa will bring you for Christmas?
“He’s bringing me a Barbie Van. I wrote him a letter, and I made magic reindeer dust with porridge and glitter.”
“Hot Wheels!”
“I hope he’ll bring me a real lion. I’d jump on his back and he’d run around the place with me on his back.”
“A phone watch, and a drum and skates.”
“Lego and a skate-board.”
“I’m getting Sylvanian Familes Ballet Theatre and a Barbie Medical Clinic.”
“A little lego man.”
“A Karoke machine and super-beads. You put the super-beads in water and you spray water on them and you wait for two minutes for them to dry and stick together to make a picture.”
“An LOL doll.”
“Unicorn slippers. I wrote him a letter. I asked for dolls and some more things but I can’t remember now.”
“Nintendo!”
“A remote control car. I’m asking for a diary as well. I’ll write stories in it.”
“An iPad.”
How do the reindeer fly?
“They have power. Santa has this star at the back of the sleigh and that makes them fly.”
“The reindeers have magic dust on them. I don’t know where Santa gets it but it’s good because it makes his reindeer fly.”
“Santa gives them carrots to make them strong and then they’re able to go really fast.”
“Santa gets magic dust from a big machine and he puts it on their backs.”
“I don’t exactly know how they fly. They’re magic. Maybe Santa grabs on to the rope thing and then they fly with the sleigh.”
“He ties them to the sleigh and off they go.”
How fast does Santa’s sleigh go?
“Really fast - as fast as a motorbike!”
“78km an hour.”
“10 miles an hour.”
“1099 miles an hour.”
“10,000 metres an hour.”
“As fast as a rocket.”
“As fast as a rocket.”
“He goes really, really quickly - he can jump.”
“As fast as an aeroplane - 150 mph!”
“As fast as a cheetah”
“As fast as a car. I’d say Rudolph moves very fast.”
“Super fast! As fast an an aeroplane.”
“He goes 10 hours around the world.”
“Faster than anything in the whole world.”
How does Santa always seem to know who’s naughty and who’s nice?
“Santa checks from the sky. He looks down with his eyes and writes if you are naughty on his list. If you’re good you get a present and if you’re not you don’t get anything. The children who don’t get presents must be sad.”
“He always knows because he has a list. I don’t know how he knows but if you’re not good you’ll get no present. I am good! I went to see Santa with all of my sisters and he said I was on the good list!”
“His robin goes to look in every house. He looks in windows and he goes back to Santa and tells him if the child was bold or not. If you’re bold all you get for Christmas is a bag of coal and if you’re good you get a present. I think I must be good. Loads of times, I’ll be good.”
“He downloads something and then he knows if you’ve been good or bad. You can download to him if you are good or bad, and that means Santa gives you a present.”
“I’m on the nice list anyway! I help my mum clean the kitchen and I can make breakfast.”
How do Santa and Mrs Claus spend Christmas Day?
“He feeds the reindeer and drinks a bottle of milk. Then he eats 3,000 cookies.”
“My Daddy said that Santa goes on holiday because he’s been so busy! So he goes on his holidays and he visits all the polar bears.”
“Santa helps his mum to clean up.”
“They feed the reindeer and then they have dinner.”
“Santa makes some more presents with the elves. Then they have a rest after going around the world.”
“Maybe Santa just falls asleep when he gets home because he is so tired after delivering all the presents.”
What do you think Mrs Claus does when she’s home all alone on Christmas Eve while Santa is busy flying around the world on his sleigh?
“She helps by cleaning out the stables and then she goes into the house and knits a blanket for their bed.”
“She makes cookies for Santa for when he’s home.”
“She makes dinner for Santa Claus.”
“She plays with her friends.”
“She cleans up the computer.”
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