While everyone is different, according to a recent poll by House Method, the average age kids in the United States stop believing in Santa Claus is 8.5 years. So, chances are good that somewhere around then is the right age for your child to learn the true story about Santa Claus.
While there is no perfect age to have this conversation, parents often start noticing their children becoming skeptical around eight, but this can vary. However, it may be beneficial to initiate the conversation before middle school. At this point, most of their peers will know the truth about Santa.
The truth is, he's not a person at all – he's an idea. Get them to think of all those presents Santa gave them over the years. Explain that you actually bought those yourself and that Santa Claus is the idea of giving for the sake of giving, without thanks or acknowledgement.
"It's not an overnight shift in thinking," says Laura Lamminen, Ph. D., a pediatric psychologist at Children's Health℠, "and there's no set age where children should know the truth about Santa Claus." Dr. Lamminen says each family and each child within that family will be ready to talk about Santa at different ages.
8- to 9-Year-Olds
Some kids are ready for the truth at this age; others are not. If needed, ask a few probing questions like, "Why do you ask?" before deciding how to answer. Keep in mind that research shows that even when children discover that Santa is not real, they still like the idea of Santa.
"There is no such thing as being too old to believe in Santa, the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy," Kelman tells Yahoo Life. "Letting kids figure it out on their own is preferable to parents breaking the news to them.
Tell Them Your Story
Another way to make the transition to a Santa-less Christmas is to tell your kids how you found out the guy in the red suit isn't real. Try to find a few points they can relate to and explain how Santa is used by all parents to make Christmas a special experience for their kids.
The Age Most Kids Figure It Out
In most cases, eight or nine is the age that children stop believing in Santa, but not for the reasons you'd think. While most parents would probably blame their child's peers for blowing the whistle, it actually has more to do with the normal development of a child's brain.
“Are Mom and Dad really Santa?” We know that you want to know the answer and we had to give it careful thought to know just what to say. The answer is no. We are not Santa. There is no one, single Santa.
Researchers found that kids' belief in Santa builds between the ages of three and five, and declines between the ages of six and nine. At five, kids have enough cognitive ability to believe in Santa and understand the concept, but most aren't yet questioning what they're being told.
If you're wondering if your kids are still expecting Santa to bring their presents this year, most have stopped believing in Old St Nick by the age of eight, according to the first international academic "Santa survey," while many parents wished that they still believed in Father Christmas even as adults.
Exactly how old is Santa? According to the blog Email Santa, Santa Claus is 1,751 years old as of 2022. In fact, the origins of Santa Claus can be traced all the way back to a monk named Saint Nicholas, who was born between 260 and 280 A.D. in a village called Patara, which is part of modern-day Turkey.
By age eight, kids begin to acknowledge the unlikeliness of one man travelling the world in a single night. The good news? If you started the tradition of Elf on the Shelf in your household, you can likely send the elf into early retirement around your child's eighth Christmas.
Yet while children often come to the realisation that Santa is not what they had been lead to believe on their own, they also tend to act along with the fiasco and continue to play along with 58% of children in one study playing the role of Santa-believer.
Believing in Santa Claus can also benefit children's development as an avenue for creativity, imagination and play. There are developmentally appropriate ways to sensitively and honestly respond to your child's questions about him.
If little ones find their Scout Elf sitting on something they need to use, like relaxing in their sink, lying on their bookbag or hanging on their clothes, then it is okay for parents to move the elf, so kids can complete their morning routine and elves can get back to their important job!
Although Santa Claus may not be real, the idea of him being a generous gift-giver stemmed from the highly celebrated monk, Saint Nick. Born around 280 A.D. in the region we now know as Turkey, Saint Nicholas was famous for his kindness.
According to historical records, Santa is real. Santa is real in the sense that he was an actual person. Otherwise known as Saint Nicholas, his story goes all the way back to the 3rd century. He was a monk who was born in 280 A.D. in modern-day Turkey.
If your child is older than 10 and still believes in the Easter Bunny, you should fill them in on the truth. Let your kids know that although the bunny itself is imaginary, it's part of a tradition that brings a lot of joy and fun to kids at Easter time.
“Ten to 12 is a great range because kids are still very connected to their parents and into their parents being in their phone and in their business,” says Catherine Pearlman, a licensed clinical social worker and author of “First Phone,” a guide for kids.
Claus is much more tight-lipped about her age than Santa is. The last time she talked about it, she mentioned she stopped counting when she turned 170. Similar to Santa, the elves believe Mrs. Claus is roughly the same age, around 1,700 years old.
While the last baby teeth generally aren't lost until age ten or 11, most children stop believing in the tooth fairy by the time they're seven or eight. Of course, children are more than happy to play along with the game when there's money at stake!
The Santa Claus that we know lives in the North Pole. According to some North American sources, his original name was Kris Kringle before he changed his name to Santa Claus. Kris Kringle was a toymaker who married Jessica. Other names found for Mrs Claus are Mary Christmas, Gertrude, and Carol.
Between his own intellectual development and the presence of siblings, relatives and friends who might accidentally (or not-so-accidentally) spill the beans, he'll likely figure it out on his own by the time he's about 8 or 10 years old.