From holiday help to mid-year school updates, here are December story ideas

Hi everyone and happy early Thanksgiving! I am going to be away for a few days with my family next week so there won’t be a newsletter next Friday, but I’ll be back on Friday, Dec. 5.

But before we pack our bags for a Thanksgiving adventure, I want to share a few ideas I love for December:

1. Local gifts under $30: Go out and find the unique stuff that is in local shops or even the things that your readers have a lot of pride in (like gifts that say I love my state). Here’s an example.

2. Last-minute holiday help list: Think about all of the things people need during the holidays at the last minute like babysitters, liquor stores, pharmacies and wrapping services. Create a story that tells people where to go for all of that in your community.

3. The best neighborhood decorations: It was really interesting during Halloween to see analytics that pointed to just how much people were searching for the best decorated houses to see for Halloween. So make sure beyond your event listings that you create this list for the holiday and a map as well.

4. Cookie shops’ best recipes: Ask bakeries to share their favorite holiday recipe that your audience can try at home. Then create a list of the best places to get those holiday treats in your community.

5. Heroes of the year package: Many will do the best stories of the year in December and one of my favorites is highlighting the people who made a difference like EMS workers, teachers, volunteers and small business owners. Another way to do this is to find your best human-interest stories of the year and repackage them into “12 local people we loved featuring this year.”

6. The guide to winter break that doesn’t involve screens:

Think about putting together a get-out-and-go list of local hikes, crafts, indoor play spots, volunteer projects, libraries and maker spaces that will help keep kids active this holiday.

Bonus idea: Create a days of Christmas feature for the break with an idea for each day.

7. Favorite ugly sweaters at local stores: This could be a fun one: Send a reporter to a thrift store and local retailers to feature the best ugly holiday sweaters. This would make for great video. This also sets up for a nice call out to your audience asking for readers to share the favorite ugly sweater.

8. Get those photos of pets: Whether it’s a photo of a dog with Santa or a pup all dressed up for the holidays, these also make for great call outs and galleries. So ask your readers to share!

9. The year in local food: These honestly could all be different lists: New restaurants that opened, restaurants planning to open in 2026, closures we’re still sad about and awards local restaurants won. People love reading about food and these lists are all great because they are actionable.

10. Chronic absenteeism mid-year check in: Attendance is a huge focus for school districts right now so find out how things went the first half of the year. There could be some really amazing success stories worth pointing out.

Bonus idea: You could do the same with an update on teacher staffing rates at the mid-year point.

11. Local mental health resources for the holiday: This can be a hard time of the year for many, so share the places people can go to and contact for help in your community along with tips.

12. What local nonprofits most need right now: Spotlight a few nonprofits and create a list of the things they are most in need of right now along with information on how to help.

Bonus idea: Create a guide just for families on ways they can volunteer with their kids this holiday.

13. State of local journalism look back: This is a great time of year to remind people of the amazing work you did this year: stories you broke, change you led and your involvement in the community. You don’t have to overdo this, a nice page in print and/or web page and video message gets the job done. Make sure you remind people how they can support the kind of work you’re calling out.

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