Rockland County Teacher Accused Of Spoiling Santa For Young Students

For Whatever Reason She Decided It Was OK To Start A Vicious Rumor

December 1, 2011 9:41 PM

Santa Claus (file / credit: clipart.com)

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NANUET, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) — As Christmas approaches and children look forward to the big day, there’s a teacher in Rockland County who took it upon herself to deal with the issue of Santa Claus.

LISTEN: 1010 WINS’ Al Jones reports

Now it’s become a controversy, reports CBS 2’s John Slattery.

The belief in Santa has gone on for hundreds of years, bestowing presents that magically appear after a late night visit from a kindly old soul.

But the belief was apparently bruised a bit at George Miller Elementary School.

The word around here is that in a second grade class, when speaking of the North Pole, a very confused teacher said something about Santa.

“That she said there was no Santa,” one parent said.

Not only did she say there was no Santa, but that parents have a hand in the presents.

“It’s probably bad judgment, yeah,” another parent said.

Irene Hoffman has three children in the school.

“Unfortunate, very unfortunate. I think it’s sad,” Hoffman said.

So devastating was the gaff, the school principal would not discuss it, nor would her superintendent. But parents at a nearby mall would.

“That’s horrible. That’s so untrue and it’s horrible,” Donna Murphy said.

The whole Santa thing was pretty much laid to rest more than a hundred years ago by a New York City newspaper. In answer to an inquisitive 8-year-old who posed the question in 1897, an editor famously wrote on the front page, “Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. Your little friends are wrong.”

A mother of a third grader made her feelings known Thursday as well.

“Oh, I would be so upset if that happened with my son,” Patrice Pickering said.

So, don we now our gay apparel, knowing for certain that Santa’s visit is just weeks away. And Santa, if you’re listening, Slattery is still looking for that Porsche.

With no comment form the superintendent, there’s no word on whether the teacher has been offered some guidance on what to say to next year’s class.

Do you think the teacher acted inappropriately? Sound off in our comments section below…

Rockland County Teacher Accused Of Spoiling Santa For Young Students

TSK

Teach the children that playing Pretend is fun. We all pretend about Santa, The Easter Bunny, and such. Encourage them to have fun with the pretending, just as we adults do. When we teach them to just believe anything we say, we perpetuate all sorts of cultural evils, such as racism and anti-semantics.
Allow them to make their own decision over time, and the world will be a more intelligent place.

Gail

TSK, well stated! telling the children it is a game and having a good time with them does not create a distrust as telling them lies that they know eventually they will find out. I thank GOD there are people like you helping their children.
Hope others will soon discover the truth about the lie of Christmas with using Santa instead of the celebration of learning to ‘love thy neighbor as thyself”.

Bill Vanderploeg

Some of these comments are really disturbing. Are we that jaded of a society that we can’t let 7/8 year old kids still believe there is a Santa? Once we lose our innocence and childhood you can’t get it back.

All these media outlets are not relaying the full context of the story. During Geography the teacher pointed out the North Pole and one of the kids blurted out that this is where Santa lives. The teacher could have simple ignored the statement or diverted it in some manner but the teacher chose to go the other route. This could easily been avoided.

fmfallon

Everyone just shut up and let the kid have his own belief. You’re all making a big deal, more than the teacher’s gaff. Grow up parents.
[Anonymous]

You are correct that she could have handled it better, and the teacher knows that too. That is why she spoke to every single parent, and apologized to her students. I still fail to see what has been gained by making this into a local, state, and now national spectacle. She apologized to the students and the students accepted the apology.

Rodin

“Just think of the tragedy of teaching children not to doubt!”

~ CLARENCE DARROW
p8nt

Perhaps these parents should go and teach their children that the holiday season isn’t about receiving gifts, and more about giving, and appreciating what you have. No wonder most of today’s kids are inept and incompetent.

Saitaina

There’s more to the Santa Clause mythology then ‘getting gifts’, go re-read the legends. Charity, hope, dreams, kindness…all things I want to inspire in my children (once you get past the horrid child abuse in some of those stories, that we can do without)

Nick

And these parents wonder why their children grows up to be lying sacks of turds with no morals. Lies Lies Lies. Always more Lies.

And it’s “horrible” when the Lies are exposed. Stupid turds.
Rodin

Is CBS blocking my posts? I suspect so.

Rodin

At least my replies?

[Anonymous]

I have a family member that works at the school. As soon as the teacher said it, she knew she shouldn’t have. She spoke to every single parent on the phone and apologized to the students. I’m not sure what else people want her to do. And if this is all about protecting the innocence of the students, then why did a parent call in the news? Blowing things out of proportion does more damage than a teacher’s mistake ever will. There are truly incompetent teachers out there who can never be fired, and a good one makes a mistake [which she acknowledged and handled immediately] and she must be removed?

[Anonymous]

P.S. The students all accepted her apology, why can’t all of you? And to the parent who decided to call the news, What would Santa [or Jesus for that matter] say about slandering someone for a simple mistake, and disrupting the education of their children with a media fiasco, all for 15 seconds of TV fame?

LK

I think that is the whole problem of telling your children there is a Santa–they equate that with GOD–Santa is a fairy tale–GOD is for real. When I was a kid the neighborhood bully told me there isn’t any santa, I ran and told my mom and she took his side–talk about devastating!!

Allys

Thank you for being a voice of reason! I don’t condone what happened, but people do make mistakes. The teacher can’t take back what was said, and really did everything that could be done to make it right. These kids would have forgotten all about this by now if there weren’t news vans parked outside of their school. The reaction this has drawn has been so ridiculous and the comments being made are unbelievable. It is now our children who are paying the price for an attention seeking parent who has caused this massive disruption in their education.

Rodin

“That’s horrible. That’s so untrue and it’s horrible.”

But the teacher was truthful and would be punished for it? Only in fantasizing, infantilizing AmeriKKKa. The liars and deceivers are the parents.

Teach truth to children, not fantasies. You can still tell fairy tales as lessons, without the accompanying deceit. Truth is the better lesson.

Frank

“AmeriKKKa”? You are disgusting. A black version of DanTe.

What if Santa in popular folklore was BLACK?

No r e parations for you. Except of course for MY tax dollars that you and your family probably continue to live off. And with the way things are going, y’all could also lose that as sooner or later.

Rodin

No, I’m a white version of DanTe.

FRANKly, I have no clue what color DanTe is nor do I care, although we often spar here. Color matters only to racist bigots, MR. AmeriKKKa. You’e a perfect example.

LORRAINE BAVARO

MY SON ALSO WENT TO A SCHOOL IN NEW CITY, NEW YORK. HE CAME HOME CRYING. HIS TEACHER TOLD HIM SANTA WAS A FAKE. I FLIPPED OUT. THE NEXT DAY, I WENT IN FRONT OF THE CLASS. I ANNOUNCED THAT I BELIEVE IN SANTA. AND IF I BELIEVE THEN IT MUST BE TRUE. I ALSO ADVISED HER THAT IF SHE EVER OR THE DISTRICT IN MY LIFE TIME HAD A SITUATION LIKE THIS AGIAN., I WILL SUE THEM ON FEEDOM OF RELIGION. HERE WE GO!!! LORRAINE BAVARO

Rodin

Didn’t know Santa was a ‘religion’. Good luck with that lawsuit. Maybe you should go for ‘defamation’ on behalf of Santa instead. And good luck producing the evidence.

Rodin

PS -

BTW, you are twice the liar:
1 There is no Santa.
2 You don’t believe in him.

Kathy

Let the children in school watch Miracle on 42nd Street. That should prove the teacher wrong. It will also teach the “so called teacher” that there certainly is a Santa Claus.

Jean

I agree, but maybe they should watch “Miracle on 34th St” That was the title when I watched it.
About the teacher, it’s not her place. Santa is a fantasy parents can let their children believe, if they wish. It’s harmless, like the Tooth Fairy. Over time, they grow out of it. Why must we rush them to grow up so fast? Let them be children, at least for a little while.

Rodin

Kathy is not a New Yorker, hasn’t got a clue where Macy’s is.

Sarah

The techer is a Jew let’s be honest . End of story .

H

No, the teacher is Asian.

Rodin

Only bigots, racists and xenophobes would care.

jeff

Your worst then the teacher with that ignorant statement. I can only imagine the household you grew up in… end of story is sadly morons like you will always be around…

Not Pretty

Your worst then the teacher with that ignorant statement.

You are = You’re, not Your. And than is spelled t-h-a-n. Thanks for spelling “ignorant” correctly.

Rodin

He’s right on substance.

You have no argument so you choose to nitpick, ridicule and insult. Typical!

Joe Schmo

It is Rockland County. Very possible.

Jill Schmo

And that means what exactly? It’s Rockland County? Seriously?

Saitaina

Wow, that was rude. How does her saying there is no Santa become ‘she’s a jew’? I know many people of the Jewish faith who promote the Santa mythos to other children and many of other faiths (including Christians) who ruin it.

J Gordon

The teacher should also tell the students the truth about god being only a myth.
Loretta Craft

I think the School system is this country just keep over stepping their boundaries. Teachers are here to teach to the best of their ability, its the parents who decide what their children should be told. And Virginia of course there is a Santa Claus. Keep believing. And let your hopes and dreams take you as far as you want to go in life.
Mike in pearl river

Way to go Channel 2 news. The real issue here is not the teacher who took it upon herself to ruined it for 23 students but the news channel who snuck the story into 23 million kids in the tri state area. Good job. We all know that was the plan anyway

Maureen

Thank you!!! This is a non-story that had already been dealt with. Now parents have to figure out how to explain to their children why the media vultures are hanging around outside of their school.
LetItBe

Exactly Mike! And let’s not forget whoever the inconsiderate parent was that called channel 12 in the first place. Why everyone not even in the district needed to be involved is beyond me. My kids, who aren’t even at Miller have heard there’s something going on with Santa now and want to know. So now we may ruin it for everyone. Stupid!

Saitaina

Simply tell them that a teacher was mistaken about Santa Clauses identity and he forgives her (seems like something the jolly ol’ man would do, he’s a rather gracious fellow in modern tales).

Lauren T.

So you’re telling me that the teacher should’ave nodded her head and agreed with her because one christian child pointed out where “Santa” lives. So by agreeing with this students, she is going against other children who have a different faith. By chance another child of a different faith knows that Santa isn’t real, so by a teacher telling him/her this it will make him confused. This is a public school system. She stated a fact. Religion should not be apart of government run schools.

Mike in pearl river

Here is a thought…The separation of church and state was added to stop the government from going after your religion. Not religion going after government. AKA the freedom of religion. She could have just said ” ask your parents for that answer” and left it at that.

Rodin

That’s a novel interpretation of the Establishment Clause. Who woulda thunk it?

How about Freedom FROM religion?

Mike in pearl river

Rodin, your free from it. It was always the fault of your college professor or some second grade teacher that makes you so angry. Do you feel better now. Good luck. Merry Holiday AKA God bless, Merry Christmas.

Rodin

Seems to me he who is angry is you. How touchy. A tad insecure when your beliefs are questioned?

And a Happy Perihelion to you!

Mike in pearl river

Na, not at all. I deal with libs like you all the time. I found that getting angry at you only makes you happy. Not insecure just disappointed.

Rodin

My, we are all about assumptions today!

1 Nonbelievers are angry. “The fact that a believer is happier than a skeptic is no more to the point than the fact that a drunken man is happier than a sober one.” ~ GEORGE BERNARD SHAW

2 I was Jesuit educated. They made me curious, not angry. They made me question; they made me doubt; they made me think, for all of which I am grateful.

3 Your anger affects my mood in no way. Delusions of grandeur? Your arrogance and attitude are laughable. When I ‘lost’ gØd, I lost the fear oif death. THAT made me happy.

4 My view on “libs”: scratch a Liberal, find a Fascist. I am a realist and, in the real world, not everything is as neatly compartmentalized and predictable as in yours. “Say anything that you like about me except that I drink water.” ~ W.C. FIELDS

Disappointed? Expectations, as in your codensed, orderly, miniscule universe, lead to disappointments. “The only world that won’t disappoint me is the one I make up.” ~ FRANCIS BACON

billy joe

shut up u dont kno wut ur talkin about

AlexandraB

Billy Joe… Do you know our first Amendment ? I can’t believe you don’t …try to respect it for the sake of all of us. Blessings !

Georgia Faye Sebeniecher

I don’t know of any religion that has Santa Claus in it, I think you are getting Santa and Christ confused. Christianity is not based on Santa Claus. Religion has nothing to do with this.

Saitaina

Thank you. Now if only I could explain that to my family when they accuse me of being greedy just because I celebrate the secular Christmas (Santa, goodwill towards men, giving fun things to friends and family to make them smile).

Disgusted in Nanuet

OH DEAR GOD! You didn’t really just say that did you? SERIOUSLY??? It’s Santa! I am assuming you are of another faith and were jealous all your childhood that you didn’t have something as fun as Santa Claus to look forward to every year!

George from Nanuet

Santa is not part of the religion. THere are some Christians who equate Santa with Satan.

LetItBe

I live in Nanuet and know the school and the teacher. Stop reporting on it and ruining it for anyone else who may read these articles. Shame on the person who called the media into this to begin with. No need to bring even more attention to the matter. What about the beautiful playground that was built in Nanuet by the community just over a month ago. Didn’t see any news cameras there showing the excitement and dedication of the community…Oh that’s right, no controversy there. Just a FUN story. Leave it alone already.

Kirby the ELF

The teacher IS NO GOOD..PERIOD not just for this but other stuff as you KNOW..She is a Grinchette!

Rodin

For the truth about the Grinch(ette) who stole the Christmas story, go to =
http://www.from-the-doghouse.com/CANINE_QUOTES/Anasagasti/Christmas_Story.html

mo

You know the teacher so, obviously you will stand up for her. How dare she destroy the dreams of 7 year old children. Shame on you for thinking she was right in giving this kind of lesson to second graders…not part of the curriculum and certainly not her job to do so…and quite frankly…what does building a playground in the community have to do with this teachers lack of professionalism?….many, many communities do wonderful things for the school districts that go unnoticed by the media…one has nothing to do with the other subject.

Allys

I don’t think anyone is standing up for the teacher’s actions, the point being made by LetItBe is that this was already handled and should have been let go. Now instead of the kids in the class being exposed to this revelation, any kid who was coming and going from school is wondering what is going on. And the relevance of the playground is that this community did a wonderful thing just a few weeks ago and tried to get media coverage and no one cared. No one would cover it. But some fool calls the media about a minor controversy and all of a sudden Channel 2 shows up in Nanuet. It is ridiculous and should have been over and done with days ago.
LetItBe

I didn’t say I stand up for her. I am saying that the press coverage is ridiculous. Did this make your life better for knowing this happened and you’re not in the district? Did this make it better that it is all over the place for other children to now hear and possibly ruin their belief? I in no way in that paragraph say I condone in it or stand up for her. I am thankful that my kids weren’t in the class. Go back and read that MO! Again, I was talking about the coverage of a Nanuet situation, go back and read that again.

Maurizio Pagano

How dare a second-grade teacher teach her kids the truth! Those who wish to protect their children from hearing anything their parents don’t wish for them to hear should home-school their children and keep them under lock-and-key 24/7.

Michel Kelley

Quack, you sound like a Union rep fighting a losing battle. Good luck with that excuse. The real issue here is the attempt to attack a religious holiday by a town employee. We Pay her paycheck, she gets to impose her thoughts on our kids. Thats how it works now. We lost control of our schools years ago. This is something that goes on every day in a lot of schools. I also have to give a shout out to channell 2 news for helping her spread her word. Like children of all ages were not watching the news tonight. It was a great way to jump on board. I would expect nothing less of this channel

FRT

Little kids don’t watch the news. Sorry to burst your bubble.

Mike Kelley

Mine does. I am sorry that I made the mistake of leaving channel 2 news on. I will be better at what I leave on .
LetItBe

Uh, I have the news on every night while making dinner, FRT and we are all in the kitchen together as a family doing homework, setting the table, etc and the television is in the den right in ear shot from the kitchen! So while my kids may not be “watching” it, they hear the name of a school that they attended just 2/3 years ago and the words SANTA CLAUS and they stop dead in their tracks…sorry to BURST YOUR BUBBLE!

li teacher

I am a 6th grade teacher and I still say there is a Santa Claus.

Scott

That’s becuase your awsome : )
Rodin

Rampant infantilism!

A 6th grader is around 11 years old. Isn’t it about time? They’re in middle school. Next year it’ll be junior high and puberty. Then they’ll be sexting. Disrobed Santas, maybe?

Ellen

The teacher is full of hum bug as Scourge would say. These are little children who dame right well deserve a childhood, and Santa is a big part of that innocence found only in childhood. What should have been said is ‘ The North Pole is a magical place that only Santa knows where it’s at, and the rest of us just imagine where it is.” Bad teacher who knows nothing about being jolly, and Santa will give that one nothing but coal in his or her’s stocking. That’s for sure.
Cos

You know, the same could be said about God… The correct answer should’ve been, “Everyone has their own belief’s about Santa. There is a St. Nicholos – according to Catholic religion. But, you should ask your parents for more information.” That would not have made the news and it would have thrown the perverbial ‘ball’ in the parents court.

I don’t think there’s anything wrong with parents teaching their children about Santa, the Tooth Fairy, God, or any other questionable character. So long as the character in question is seen as peaceful and loveable.

On a side note, there is nothing wrong with children believing in Santa. As a matter of fact, it can often help in keeping their behavior at bay – even if only during the Holiday season.

In my opinion, Santa does exist – just not in the way he’s often depicted. He’s not a robust man who dresses up every year and delivers kids presents. He lives in all of us.
RingaDingDing

Santa IS real. Get over it.
Virginia O’Hanlon

DEAR EDITOR: I am 8 years old.
Some of my friends say there is no Santa Claus.
Papa says, ‘If you see it on 1010WINS it’s so.’
Please tell me the truth; is there a Santa Claus?

Clark A

Of course there is a Santa. I am going to visit with him this Saturday at the Rockefeller Center, as I’m coming from CT
Kate

VIRGINIA, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except [what] they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men’s or children’s, are little. In this great universe of ours man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect, as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.

Yes, VIRGINIA, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no VIRGINIAS. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.

Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies! You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas Eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if they did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that’s no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.

You may tear apart the baby’s rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived, could tear apart. Only faith, fancy, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, VIRGINIA, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding.

No Santa Claus! Thank God! he lives, and he lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay, ten times ten thousand years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.

NYer in NJ

Seriously, this is an issue? And it makes it into the news?
My kids have always known tha the Tooth Fairy doesn’t exist; it’s right there with Santa.
Smh that parents still perpetuate this nonsense!

Santa’s Helper

Great attitude…. I see the swamps and industrial pollution of NJ have effected your sense of spirit… Glad to see you no longer reprsent us NYers.

NYer in NJ

‘Spirit’, really? Santa has nothing to do with ‘spirit’. There are plenty of ways of being in the holiday spirit, telling the kids fairy tales and passing them off as the truth is not part of that. If you want to include Santa, there are better ways to do that than by lying to your kids.

And, by the way, learn to spell: it’s ‘affected’ not ‘effected’. But then again, if you go to a public school where they make you believe in fairy tales, spelling is probably not very high on your list of priorities or the school’s agenda.

Marcel Dimanche

I have said the same thing to my children, and we still enjoy Christmas and Santa. We make a fuss over nothing, we are attention seekers.
diver

I’m 61 and still tramatized from when I found out that Santa wasn’t real 10 years ago.

Marcel Dimanche

You need to find something to do. At 61 you are tramatized over Santa?
Blasterific

Wait huh I am 43, now you are telling me there is no Santa! *sniff sniff* Oh the horror.

Jones

And I’m sure that it now goes for any other kids that happen to be reading above. Way to go c B.S. Anything for a story.

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Rockland County Teacher Accused Of Spoiling Santa For Young Students

For Whatever Reason She Decided It Was OK To Start A Vicious Rumor

December 1, 2011 9:41 PM

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