10 Ways to Get on the Nice List this Christmas

It’s coming up to that most wonderful time of the year, where in order to get your Christmas list checked off by those hard working elves up at the North Pole – you have to make sure you have secured your place firmly on the Nice List! Here are 10 Ways to Get on the Nice List this Christmas, guaranteed to keep you in the favour of the big guy when he comes on Christmas Eve!

Hello Children. My name is Santa Claus – but you may call me Father Christmas if you prefer! What a pleasure it’s been to have been working at the North Pole on all your presents this year. I hope you’ve been very good over the last 12 months. If you’re not sure if you’ve done everything you can to not be on the Naughty List, don’t worry – I’m here to tell you 10 ways to guarantee a place on the Nice List!

My dear elf friend Cinnamon and I can’t wait to come back to Imaginacts and visit the children of Hampshire once again. Cinnamon is very good at spreading Christmas cheer – have you met her? You can read all about her story here. It even features a very special guest (me!) ??

Helping Your Grown-Ups

Now listen, children. Your grown-ups work very hard all year round, and especially hard at Christmas. I spend a lot of time liaising with them when it comes to your Christmas gifts, you see – My elves are wonderful and create the most wonderful toys, but sometimes they find themselves too busy to tick off everything on your list. I often write to your parents to discuss which gifts they are happy to buy for you and which ones I’m able to make!

One of the nicest things you can do, is to help share the load. Your grown-ups have so much to do, and by helping them in their chores, you can give yourself the best chance at getting onto the nice list – and they’ll be very grateful too!

Here are some great ways to help your grown-ups: Offer to help them with the washing up. Even if you can’t reach the sink to clean the dishes, you could help drying with a towel! You could also help tidy the house by making sure you clean up your own rubbish. Try putting your empty sweetie packets in the bin, or taking your glass to the kitchen sink once you’ve finished your drink. Don’t leave your coats and shoes on the floor when you come home from school. Another great way to help is to join in with grocery shopping and unpacking – an extra pair of hands to carry bags is always helpful. If you’re not sure what help your grown-up needs, you can always ask them!

Clean Your Bedroom

This comes hand in hand with the previous tip! But instead of helping your grown-up, this time it’s important to take responsibility for your own space – and tidy it all by yourself! It’s a privilege to have a bedroom all to yourself, and you must look after it. Make your bed in the morning when you wake up, put away your laundry when it’s clean or into the laundry basket when it’s dirty – and here’s a very important one – pick your toys up off the floor!

HI!!! It’s Cinnamon here. Cinnamon the excitable elf!! I’m so sorry Santa, I just couldn’t help myself from joining in when I saw you were talking about TOYS. Did you know it’s actually my job to make toys?? I make them all year round for Christmas, until the festive season begins and I can do my very favourite thing in the world – spread Christmas cheer!!!

Toys are VERY important. They must be looked after very carefully!!! They provide so much fun and comfort – and they give THE BEST cuddles – so you don’t want to leave them cold on the floor! Make sure your toys are in their proper place. They can sit on your bed, warming it up for you before bedtime – they can sit on your shelves, watching over you to keep you safe – OR they can stay in one of their favourite places to live, a TOY BOX! Toy boxes are AMAZING because all your toys get to hang out with all their friends in one place. If you’re looking for a new toy box for you best toy friends, I would totally recommend THIS ONE because it looks like SO MUCH FUN in there!!!

Thank you, Cinnamon!

Practice Good Manners

You may have heard your grown-ups reminding you to say your “Please” and “Thank You”s – these are very important words which hold a lot of magical power! But there are many more manners that you must learn. Say “You’re Welcome” when somebody thanks you. Remember to apologise if you have done something wrong or upset somebody. Remember to say “Excuse Me” when you need to squeeze past somebody, or if you have sneezed! Remember to ask permission from your grown-ups before you do something you’re not sure you have permission to do. My particular favourite display of good manners, is a child who smiles at me. You never know how much somebody could be in need of a smile!

Share With Your Friends

This is a lesson that the elves in my grotto have come to know very well – there is always enough to go round! Whether it’s sweets, treats, teddy bear stuffing or wrapping paper – we must all remember to share. Sharing truly is caring, and that’s the reason I share the gifts that the elves make with children all around the world – because I care about you all! And what would Christmas be without presents?

Next time you are playing with your friends, remember – toys are meant to be shared and enjoyed together! And so are snacks… So if you find yourself with a big bag of sweeties, why don’t you ask your friends and family if they’d like some too?

Be Kind to Your Siblings

I know that sometimes they can annoy and bother you, but your siblings really are the best friends that you get gifted by your parents! Remember your manners, remember to share with them, and remember to be kind to them. Are you and your siblings the very best of friends?

Last Christmas I met a pair of Snow Sisters who do truly love each other and look after each other! What kind things have you done for your siblings today? Maybe now’s your chance to make a gesture that says “Thank you for being my forever friend”! In fact, they wrote a blog all about the Holiday Traditions that they like to celebrate together – if you’re looking for some ideas!

Do Your Homework

It’s terribly difficult and can be terribly boring – especially when all you want to do when you get home from school is play – but doing your homework is very important to help your brain grow! Maths and English, Science and more – all of these things you learn at school help your brain grow stronger every day. In order to get that top spot on the Nice List, try working very hard on your school work at the beginning of the Christmas holidays. Then, when you’re done – you can sit back and relax, enjoying the festive period without anything else weighing on your mind!

Eat All Your Fruits and Vegetables

This is a very important thing to do. It’s how you keep your body nice and healthy! I do understand that sometimes they just don’t taste as nice as candy canes and other sweet treats – but they can still be as yummy as can be, and be good for you! Looking after your health is such an important thing to do, it certainly earns a spot on the Nice List in my books. Do you have a favourite fruit or vegetable?

Brush Your Teeth

After you’ve helped your grown-ups tidy away your dinner (in which you ate all of the vegetables!) thanked them for a delicious meal and excused yourself from the table, the very important thing you need to do next is to brush your teeth!

It’s very important to keep your teeth clean, you need those for chomping on your food! Another great way to look after your baby teeth is to drink lots of milk. Do you like drinking milk? I love a nice glass of milk. Which reminds me, if you feel like leaving me a glass and maybe a cookie – plus a carrot for Rudolph – out on Christmas Eve, I’d sure be grateful…

Look After the Planet

My friends at Imaginacts Entertainment regularly talk about how important it is to look after the planet! And the planet has been changing a lot, over years and years and years. Every Christmas I travel around the entire globe, and I’ve noticed quite a few things that are different now from when I first began to bring gifts to the children of the world.

There are more people for a start! More people need more space to live, which means more food on their plates, more energy in their homes, more cars on their driveways and more rubbish in the bin! The best way I’ve seen to combat these big changes is by following three simple steps – Reduce, Reuse, Recycle! If you need any tips on how to make some changes – here’s a few things Imaginacts is doing…

Anyone who does these three things is guaranteed a place on the Nice List! What have you done to look after the planet today? Every little bit helps. I’d love to fly around the world this Christmas Eve and look down to see a greener planet. Wouldn’t you?

Say Something Nice to Someone

This is such a simple thing to do, and can make the world of difference to a person’s day. All you need to do is to find one nice thing to say to someone. You can compliment anyone you like, your grown-up, a friend, your teacher, your sibling… Even your pet! People are magical, and have many wonderful qualities. Humans are brave, smart, funny, kind, sweet, generous, loyal, honest, excitable (LIKE ME!!!!) Yes thank you, Cinnamon! You may think they way someone styles their hair is very cool. You might like the colour of their new glasses, or the way they told a funny story, or how brave it was for them to stand up to a bully. There are lots of wonderful things you can admire about somebody in your life, and it would be truly lovely to let them know how great they are!

I can’t wait for the festive season!!!! And now I’m back on the Nice List, I’ll be sure to look out for your names there too!!! It truly is the best time of the year. Cinnamon and I are looking forward to catching the sleigh down from the North Pole to see you all very soon! We wish you a very, merry Christmas!

Written by Fiona Lynn