No expensive airplane tickets or jet lag needed! I’ve lived and loved Northern Virginia for 9 years (6 of them with kids) and I wanted to share my top 5 favorite trips for families in the area. Northern Virginia often gets overlooked because of its proximity to Washington D.C. but there are …

Welcome to the Grand Canyon, circa 1869… a place very different from the scenic tourist spot it is today. This is a desert world, heavy with glaring sun and danger at every possible turn, from monstrous white-water rapids to venomous scorpions to the meanest rattlesnakes this side of Arizona.

Since October is National Bullying Prevention Month, local author Tom Nochera reached out to Fairfax County Times about his new children’s book “A Goat Named Joey,” that is centered around Joey LeGoat, a bullied goat.

Springfield residents looking to clean their homes now have a place to bring any clothes, tools, and appliances they no longer need, courtesy of a new GreenDrop donation center that opened at the Saratoga Shopping Center on Oct. 14.

Matthew Snell, 31, of Md., a Thoreau Middle School teacher, faces charges of carnal knowledge of a child and taking indecent liberties with a child by person in custodial relationship.

When Fairfax County Public Schools appointed Clint Mitchell as the new principal at Mount Vernon Woods Elementary School, the district’s primary directive to its newest administrator was change the culture.

What if lack of feminine hygiene products kept you in your room for days and you couldn’t go to school? Local teen Girl Scouts in Oakton pondered this question about their peers in developing countries.

If you are a member of the “learning never ends” tribe, then you are probably aware of The Great Courses, a company that produces exceptional video and audio college-level courses taught by top professors, shaped by customers’ input. The courses can be streamed on your laptop, TV, or tablet …

A black Fairfax County private school student who reported being targeted in an assault by white classmates now says her allegations were false, the school revealed in a statement on Monday.

Check out this month’s recommendations from Fairfax County Public Library, then head to a branch near you to pick up these books and more. Looking for other suggestions? Visit FCPL’s Find Your Next Book online guide for ideas and a personal readers’ advisory service.

Pamela Ononiwu just wants to talk about the issues.

Until today, Fairfax County residents experiencing domestic and sexual violence had to travel to the Historic Courthouse in Fairfax or the South County Human Services Building in Alexandria to talk with an advocate face-to-face.

“That Zucchini guy,’ as kids call him, is not only popular with preschoolers and kindergarteners; he is also popular with moms and dads.

Almost two years after voting to rename J.E.B. Stuart High School as Justice High School in Falls Church, the Fairfax County School Board is contemplating revisions to its policy for renaming existing school facilities.

Parenting writer and author Jodi Meltzer Darter is coming to the Barnes & Noble in Fairfax on Sunday, Sept. 22 at 1 p.m. to read and discuss her children’s book, “When You Lived in My Belly.”

The advocacy group 'Mothers Out Front Fairfax County' did not expect its Clean Buses for Kids campaign to see such swift progress.

Michael Platt has always known that he wanted to help kids who did not have enough food to eat. An avid baker, with a passion to fight food inequality, he started Michaels Desserts at only 11 years old. Steadfast on his mission to do his part in closing the meal gap, Michaels Desserts operat…

Childrens, Picture Book

Simon Chang never had any difficulty getting along with other people.

Fairfax County Public Schools students likely had a lot on their minds when they woke up on Monday for the first day of a new school year, from anxieties about new classes and teachers to the anticipation of reuniting with friends after the long summer.

Police have arrested Kevin Norton, 50, of Springfield, in a suspected indecent liberties case that occurred on Aug. 14, at the Springfield Town Center.

This year marks a historic year for the country’s first weightless flight company, Arlington-based Zero Gravity Corporation (ZERO-G), as they celebrate 15 years of offering extraordinary experiences.

As Fairfax County makes progress toward embracing solar energy, some local environmental advocates have turned their sights to a new front in the battle against climate change.

The Wiggles put everything your child needs to learn into capsules of preschool songs that stay with you forever. Very little analysis has been done to understand the magic of their songwriting and their music. At least, their original members, Anthony Field (Blue), Greg Page (Yellow), Murra…

A Fairfax County Public Schools music teacher has been convicted on three counts related to the solicitation of a minor, Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring announced on Monday.

You’re never too young to make a difference in this world; anyone can make a huge impact.

Two hours after undergoing a Cesarean section to give birth to her fourth child on July 8, Tasha Nelson found herself on the phone with Rep. Jennifer Wexton’s office (D-Va.) discussing the Affordable Care Act.

The seeds of Laura Ramirez-Drain’s campaign to represent Hunter Mill District on the Fairfax County School Board took root after her son was diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

Children’s, Picture Book

The Fairfax Surf Shop has always been a special place to Adam Turrisi.

On July 31st, a group of families from Fairfax's Mantua community hosted a supply drive to collect items for immigrants crossing the U.S. border. Over 40 boxes of supplies were donated, sorted and shipped to the Catholic Charities of Rio Grande Valley by the volunteers.

Fairfax County Public Schools has not conducted a full-scale school boundaries review in about 35 years, and a work session that the Fairfax County School Board held on July 22 to discuss possible changes to the boundary adjustment policy illustrated why officials have been reluctant to tack…

To Wilfredo Torres, Midieast Studios represents opportunity, a place for people to escape and express themselves through music.

Vinson X. Palathingal is proud to be Asian American.

A Great Falls nonprofit has spent the last decade helping bring clean energy to rural homes in Africa, and that work has now earned it global recognition courtesy of an international award for projects and organizations dedicated to reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Wayne Lopez-Jimenez still remembers how it felt to lose his mother.

April 7 might not have been a day that many of us saw as significant, but for New York Times best-selling author, Immaculée Iligabiza, and the millions living in the country of Rwanda, it marked the 25th anniversary of the start of something truly tragic; the Rwandan genocide, a mass murderi…

Children’s Picture Book

By the end of June, three unique, visually charming and functional works of permanent public art are scheduled to be installed on the grounds of two Reston elementary schools—two birdhouses at Sunrise Valley and a birdbath at Terraset. The artistic creations of fifth-grade students at Sunris…

Given the frequency with which it occurs, gun violence has become a near-constant topic of discussion in U.S. national politics, but it is particularly urgent in Virginia right now as state legislators prepare to convene on July 9 for a special session to address the issue.

Former Virginia Secretary of Education Anne Holton will serve as George Mason University’s interim president this fall while the public university’s board of visitors searches for a permanent appointee.

In 1942, as World War II raged across the globe, a Navy destroyer christened with the moniker the U.S.S. Herndon departed from Norfolk and charted a course for the embattled waters of Europe.

The ants are marching all the way from Portland to Wolf Trap in Vienna, carrying songs for “not only the kids in our lives but the kid in all of us,” with nods to The Beatles and other great songwriters. After all, "Love Is All You [we] need."

Seven northern Virginia students are national winners in the 2018-19 National PTA Reflections arts contest after winning first-place awards in every other tier of the multi-level competition. The Parent Teacher Association (PTA) celebrates their 50th anniversary of hosting the Reflections pr…

Rising Oakcrest Senior Megan Meehan won first place in the Tenth Annual Gabriela Mistral Youth Poetry Competition with her poem “Guardian Angel.” She also received an Honorable Mention for another work entitled “Silent Ones Are Waiting.”