Kentucky School for the Deaf students got a special visit from Santa, a few of his elves and a reindeer on Friday.

Boyle County High School students Ellie Begley, Abbey Hotchkiss, Shelby Moore and Adrien Van Steenlandt, visited as a citizenship project for their AP Government class.

“We’re supposed to get in the community,” Begley said. “We thought it would be good to do it at the Kentucky School for the Deaf.”

The visit included a gift for every student at KSD, prepared by the four seniors.

Some students were away for an overnight basketball trip, she said, but they would still receive the gifts, which included Christmas and winter-themed socks, candy and a letter to parents.

“We tried to be gender neutral,” Begley said. “We surveyed all of the teachers and they thought the socks would be a fun gift.”

While none of the seniors are fluent in American Sign Language, Begley, whose father, Will, is the principal BCHS, said she could sign some. She has volunteered after school at the Kentucky School for the Deaf, and Moore has shadowed the occupational therapist. The two girls knew some of the students.

American Sign Language relies a lot on facial expression and nonverbal cues, and that added to the young children’s reactions, they said.

It had been a fun day, the four seniors said, especially when seeing the youngest kids as they met Santa.

Follow Kendra Peek on Twitter, @knpeek.