So you're having a Secret Santa workshop at your church bazaar, day care, school or other locale? Planning will be lots of fun, and the kids will enjoy their own special shopping spot. Here are some ideas to get you started.
Advance Planning
Make up a one-page flyer advertising your event. Include the date, time and cost, which could range from $1-$5 per gift depending on the available items. Do a news release to your local papers so kids will know to attend the event if it's open to the public.
Choosing Sale Items
Cater the available gifts to the kids who will be visiting your Secret Santa Workshop. If all the kids will be very young, your workshop assistants could help choose items. Plan to have lots of small gifts for moms, dads, siblings, teachers and grandparents. Dollar stores are great for finding gifts, or have new items donated by your friends or the people in your church.
For moms, kids love to pick small boxed "'jewelry" items like Christmas pins; candles and chocolates are also favorites. For dads, books, mugs, tools and gloves are popular. Kids also like to choose Christmas ornaments or other decorations, small figurines, hand lotions, etc., and be sure to have "sibling items" from which they can choose: beanie babies with tags and other small toys are good for these.
Room Rules
Grown-ups should not be allowed in the room – the workshop workers (teens are great for this) should help the child choose gifts for the recipients of their choice. When parents bring a child to the Secret Santa room, they should be asked how many gifts the child will select and who the gifts might be for. Kids should have as much independence as possible in the process so that it makes them feel like they are really the ones giving the gift. Parents should give their child money and tell them how many gifts they may pick out. Kids should not be allowed to choose items for themselves; they're learning about giving to others.
Wrap It Up
Have an adjacent room ready for the wrapping room. Collect gift bags and tissue paper, wrapping paper, scissors, tape and gift tags. Again, teens are great for workers in the wrapping room – they can help the children select how the gifts will be wrapped and be sure the to/from tags are filled out.
There is something very special at the holidays about watching a child pick out a gift for their mom or dad, grandparent or sibling. Kids are thrilled to be able to give gifts, and a Secret Santa workshop teaches them that it's much more fun to give than to receive at the holidays.
Read more creative Christmas articles.
