Saint Nicholas: Gold Through a Window at Night… The Real Saint Nicholas
A Saint Nicholas Day special. About 1,700 years ago, a kind bishop called Nicholas lived in Myra, in today's Turkey. The story says he secretly threw gold through a poor man's window for his three daughters. Today, his Dutch name, Sinterklaas, gives us Santa Claus. Learn five A1 words and how to use give someone something.
Coming 3 December 2026, 11:00 am New York time
Transcript
Tap a time to jump to that moment. Highlighted words have a meaning: tap them. Words in bold show today's grammar.
A poor man had three and no money.
One night, a bag of gold flew in through his .
Who gave it?
This is the story of Saint Nicholas.
.
A is money.
The bag was full of gold .
.
We look out of a .
The gold came in through the .
.
A is a girl in a family.
The man had three .
.
When you , you let someone have a thing.
The past is gave.
Nicholas liked to to poor people.
.
is a holiday in December.
Today, his story is part of .
Now, one pattern: , plus a person, plus a thing.
He gave the girls gold.
Ready?
Let's begin.
About 1,700 years ago, Nicholas lived in Myra, in today's Turkey.
He was a , a church leader.
He was kind to poor people.
In his town lived a poor man with three .
The girls wanted to marry, but there was no money.
Nicholas wanted to help, but in secret.
The story says he walked to the house at night.
He threw a bag of gold through the .
In the morning, the father found the gold.
Now one could marry.
Then a second bag came.
Some fell into socks by the fire.
The father wanted to know: who gave his family gold?
On the third night, he waited by the .
Then he saw a man in the dark.
It was Nicholas!
He gave the girls gold.
But he said: please, tell no one.
Still, people told the story for hundreds of years.
Today, children remember him on 6 December.
They put out their shoes, and Sinterklaas them sweets.
Sinterklaas is Dutch for Saint Nicholas.
That name became .
Today, his story is part of .
Let's review.
The bag was full of gold .
The gold came in through the .
The man had three .
Nicholas liked to to poor people.
Today, his story is part of .
And remember: he gave the girls gold.
Saint Nicholas's story teaches us: the best gifts are given quietly.
Step 3
Words from the story
Say the word, guess its meaning, then flip the card. Keep the ones you know, and practise the rest again.
Great work, you know every word in this story. Now try the quiz below.
coin noun
a small, round piece of money
“The bag was full of gold coins.”
window noun
an opening in a wall; you look out of it
“The gold came in through the window.”
daughter noun
a girl in a family; the child of a mother or father
“The man had three daughters.”
give verb
to let someone have something (past: gave)
“Nicholas liked to give to poor people.”
Christmas noun
a holiday on 25 December
“Today, his story is part of Christmas.”
bishop noun
a leader in the church
“Nicholas was a bishop in Myra.”
Santa Claus noun (name)
a happy old man in stories who brings children presents at Christmas
“The name Sinterklaas became Santa Claus.”
chimney noun
a tall pipe on a roof; smoke from the fire goes out through it
“In stories, Santa Claus comes down the chimney.”
Grammar in the story
give + someone + something
We use it for: to say who gets the thing
- He gave the girls gold.
- Who gave his family gold?
- Sinterklaas gives them sweets.
From the story
- He gave the girls gold.
- My mum gave me a book.
Find it in the story 5 times
Your turn
He gave gold.
Sinterklaas gives sweets.
My friend gave me .
Step 4
Story Challenge
9 quick rounds: choose, fill the gap, build the sentence and match the words. Answer in a row to build a streak and earn bonus points.
Well done!
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Take it further
Note: Saint Nicholas was a real bishop, but we know very little about his life. The story of the gold for the three daughters is an old legend.
Before you watch: Who brings presents to children in your country? When?
After you watch: Write three sentences with give + a person + a thing. For example: My dad gave me a bike. I gave my friend a card. My teacher gives us homework.
Think about it: Nicholas gave his gift in secret. Is a secret gift better than a gift everyone knows about? Why?
Fun facts:
- In the old story, the girls needed money called a dowry to marry. Their father had none — so Nicholas’s gold changed their lives.
- In 1087, sailors took Nicholas’s bones from Myra to Bari, in Italy. A big church for him stands there today.
- Old pawnshops (shops that lend money) often show three gold balls. People say they come from Nicholas’s three bags of gold.
- In the Netherlands, Sinterklaas comes on 5 December. In Belgium, Germany, Poland and many other countries, children find their presents on the morning of 6 December.
- A famous American poem from 1823, A Visit from St. Nicholas (“’Twas the night before Christmas”), made his Christmas Eve visit famous.
