holidays

12 gifts of poetry for everyone on your list

By Lora Strum

Poets and literary editors share a timeless present -- one that never shrinks, breaks or runs out of battery life.

How to grow the perfect Christmas Tree (it’s harder than you think)

By Vicky Stein

Shapely evergreens don’t just grow straight out of the ground in top condition. Success in festive tree farming is a moving target.

7 easy ways to give back this holiday season

By Larisa Epatko

As the holidays approach, we look at some simple ways to contribute to charitable efforts in your community and bring others a little cheer.

Don’t assume that every student had a fun or warm holiday break

By Kirsten Perry

For many students and their families, the holidays can be a time of high anxiety and stress. Read these tips from the 2018 School Counselor of the Year on how teachers can help students transition back to school.

The best gift ever, according to 13 writers, musicians and podcasters

By Elizabeth Flock, Anne Azzi Davenport

Jonathan Franzen, Renee Fleming, Ken Burns and others share the best gift they've ever received.

Column: This Black Friday, do something different. Get outdoors

By Richard Coolidge

This year on Black Friday, take your dog for a walk, go on a hike, explore a beach, get out on the water, play a board game, spend time with those who matter.

Teaching kids about Thanksgiving or Columbus? They deserve the real story

By David Cutler

My students felt betrayed, angry even, that throughout their elementary and middle school years, teachers had pushed a fake narrative, or had done little, if anything, to correct the record.

Column: Why you should tell your kids tragic stories this holiday season

By Marshall Duke, Emory University

In every culture that anthropologists have ever studied, people tell stories. Families most frequently tell stories around the time of vacations, family reunions, (sadly) funerals, Thanksgiving and, of course, the family-oriented winter holidays of Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa.

News Wrap: FBI says ISIS is urging holiday attacks on the U.S.

By PBS News Hour

In our news wrap Friday, the FBI is warning that Islamic State supporters are urging attacks on holiday gatherings and churches in the U.S. Also, the suspect who plowed a truck into a Berlin Christmas market has been shot dead.

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Photos: What Santa does on his day off

By Abbey Oldham

Father Christmas, Père Noël, St. Nicholas, Babbo Natale, Santa Claus: The jolly old man with a white beard is an unmistakable figure around the United States, but he didn’t always wear a red coat and have a reindeer posse.