The Christmas season is one full of illusions, desires and joy. For many children it is also that magical date on which Santa will soon arrive and a few weeks later, the Magi. This belief is common in young children and that disappears as they get older.
But, Is there an age at which children should stop believing in Santa Claus or the Magi? Do magic and fantasy have a specific expiration date?
The innocence of children
When our children are young, one of the things that most moves our parents is to see their eyes shine with excitement at the things that excite and surprise them. His early years they are full of that tender look full of innocence and in their hearts there is an infinite space for imagination.
As parents, we get that illusion that our children have and we become his accomplices, following the game and trying to preserve his innocence, which experts recommend doing until at least 5 years of age. That time where the imagination is wonderful is short and personally I think it should be enjoyed and valued.
In Babies and more How and when to tell the children the truth about Santa Claus and the MagiOne of the most beautiful memories I have of my childhood, is precisely that gift of believing in fantasy and that magic is real. The capacity of astonishment and innocence of childhood, are two of the things that now as a mother I love most in my daughter, and that remind me of the value of the beautiful things in life.
The magic of Christmas is not just believing that there is a man with a beard who travels around the world and leaves gifts at the home of all children in just one night. Part of that atmosphere that is felt at Christmas time is also joy, hope, peace, good wishes, love and all those beautiful feelings that provide us with some illusion in our hearts, and that we undoubtedly owe to our children, well all those emotions increase when we are parents.
When do children stop believing in magic?
As our children grow up and begin to develop a different way of thinking, more logical, more rational, and hopefully naturally sometime begin to doubt about these magical characters that they enjoyed so much in their early years.
According to experts, abstract thinking begins to appear after 7 years of age, which it is usually the age at which some children begin to realize that everything is a fantasy, because they begin to find some inconsistencies in the stories that we have told them so much.
When that time comes, we must be ready, so as not to fall into a spiral of lies when trying to continue with that illusion. If what we want to avoid is a bad time or that the illusion of our children becomes disappointment, there are some very beautiful stories that we can talk with them, like that of the mother who explained to her son that Santa Claus were all of us and asked him if he was now ready to be him too.
In Babies and more The curious tactic of a mother to explain the truth about Santa Claus without breaking the heart of her childrenActually, there is no specific age to tell children the truth about Santa Claus or the Magi, since each child develops at their own pace and some begin to have that logical and rational thinking before others.
What if my son continues to believe after that age? Should we tell him?
As I mentioned before, 7 years is the age at which children begin to realize some details that make them question the veracity of these magical characters. Experts advise that The best age to talk with our children about the reality about Santa Claus or the Magi is between 7 and 11 years old, because they are already able to understand it better.
I read an article in Pop Sugar, in which it was mentioned that at 10 years it was a bit ridiculous for children to continue believing in Santa ClausWell, they were almost teenagers. Something that I found mainly interesting in that article, were the reasons why it made no sense that at that age they continued to believe in a man with a white beard who traveled all over the world in one night.
They mentioned that at age 10, children should be starting to develop their curiosity and question the world around them, as a necessary part of their personal and school life. That curiosity would make them divergent thinkers and help them become people capable of solving problems in a real and logical way, something very necessary for adult life.
As a child who used to believe in Santa Claus and now as a mother who loves Christmas, I believe that each child will guide us when the time comes to tell them the truth. We as parents want to preserve that innocence and magic of our children, but we must also understand that at some point they will stop being children and our job will be to prepare them for the real world. We must accept it and be ready for when the time comes, and explain that the true magic of Christmas, goes beyond gifts.
