There are hundreds of stories on how Santa got his job. This is by far the most unique. We follow Santa from a young man starting with his first job through all the jobs he wasn’t so good at until he became the person he is known as today. This was a lot of fun. I might have to add it to my permanent collection
#Wintergames #teamreadnosereindeer +26 ( )

"How Santa Got His Job" is a neat Christmas book that children would love to read around the holiday time of year. The book had a really good plot and events leading up to Santa becoming "Santa." The illustrations are also done very well. For example, going along with the illustrations, the background on every page of the book is the job advertisement section of the newspaper because throughout the book, Santa was continuing to go through jobs and look for a new one that would suit him well. I think that that adds detail to the book because you can tell he has been scanning very thoroughly for a job that is the right one for him. I enjoyed the events leading up to the plot because they made the story flow with transitions that made sense and all lead up to the main event of the story. For example, Santa starts out with his first job as cleaning chimneys. On one of the pages it says, "he loved twisting through the tight spaces." "Santa" has to fit through tight spaces, so this job is one that helps him be a better Santa. Also, Santa gets a job as a mail man, and even started delivering packages in the middle of the night (like Santa does), then he liked staying up late cooking as a chef, but he ate so much food. He then gets a job at the zoo and makes a particular friendly bond with the reindeer. This connects to the fact that reindeer are what fly Santa's sled. Santa then gets his job at the circus, but they said he didn't take his job there serious enough, so he was fired from that job as well. Lastly, after Santa got fired from the circus, a bunch of elves came to him for his autograph and then invited him and the reindeer over for supper at their house, way out of town (the North Pole). Santa saw the toys that the elves made everywhere and thought it would be a neat idea to deliver them to boys and girls all over the planet. All of the events of him having different jobs, all had Santa gain those skills that are necessary in order to be "Santa." Next, the illustrations are well done. An English Language Learner could also follow along in this book because every scene is explicitly illustrated to exactly what the words are saying. For example, on one page, when Santa is a mailman delivering packages in the middle of the night, the page says, "But there was a problem, "No one was glad to see him at that hour. The postmaster got so many complaining letters that Santa had to leave." In the illustration it shows Santa delivering a package in the middle of the night and a man opening his door dressed in his pajamas with an unpleasant look on his face since Santa woke him up in the middle of the night.

The big idea/message of this story is that you have to keep trying and working until you find something that suits you well. In this story, Santa kept having different jobs that all lead him down the path for the perfect job, him being "Santa." In this story, Santa never gives up; he keeps trying new jobs until he finds one he is good at and enjoys. Anyone should know that just because one thing does not work out for you, does not mean that something else won't work as well. You just have to keep trying until something that is the right fit for you, comes your way. ( )

Another Christmas story, should probably find some other holiday stories to have in the classroom. This is a rather different tale of how Santa became Santa. it is a fun holiday story for kindergarten and up.

A clever Christmas book! ( )

A delightful peek at Santa trying out different jobs that helped him become Santa Claus. It illustrates that everyone has to start somewhere to achieve their dreams. ( )