We created a resource to help parents of children with disabilities who are considering life insurance. We cover how much life insurance one should have, how to financially plan for future expenses based on a child's needs and resources for families looking for help.
                       --Antonnella


https://www.bankrate.com/insurance/life-insurance/parents-of-children-with-disabilities/

I have been so busy lately, I can't seem to find time to update this site on a regular basis.  Be patient, maybe this winter I can add a lot more info.

In the mean time, I did receive a few e-mails:

From Tim at Fiscal Tiger:  https:// www.fiscaltiger.com/cost-to-homeschool-your-child/

From Derek about books:

The reading resources on your Everything you need to Know about Music, Art, and English! page are incredibly helpful! Your page inspired me to assemble my own reading resource for parents and children.

Over the last few months I've been building the 50 Best Children's Books of All Time list. The list includes the most quintessence children's reading classics, both new and old.

The best children's book list includes:

• The 50 best children's books of all time
• Books sorted into age groups (infant / toddler, preschool, elementary, and middle school)
• Research and studies on the importance of reading
• Tips for parents on how to read to their children (all ages covered!)

Reading throughout childhood is more important than many parents realize. Here are a few surprising stats from major studies around the US.

• 80% of a child's brain is formed in the first 3 years (according to the Reach Out & Read program)
• Low-income children are especially at risk for development and literacy delays
• 20% of adults have a below basic literacy level (according to a National Center for Education Statistics)

While I was growing up I came across a quote that has always stayed with me... "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."

Suffice to say, I don't think my best children's books of all time list is going to change the world, but if it can just help one child or family it will have been worth creating it.

I hope it's a resource you find helpful and would consider adding it to share with your community.

Thanks so much for your time and for all you do for our children.

Warmest Regards,
Derek Hales
Founder, Modern Castle
Follow me on Twitter and LinkedIn

As a working mom, this whole situation has represented a big challenge trying to manage work and homeschooling, but I also know it is a rewarding experience that has helped me connect with my kids as we learn together and build a lifelong bond!

With this in mind, I decided to also take the time to write the article How to Create the Best Environment for Homeschooling and share some tips that have worked for me to go through this situation.

You can check out the full article here: “How to Create the Best Environment for Homeschooling”


Have a great day and stay safe,
Rocio Espinoza

Let me catch you up on who has sent suggestions in the past year or so:

In Oct. 2019, Daniel Brown of Study.com sent this:
I am writing to ask if you could add a link to Study.com’s homeschool curriculum.
As I’m sure you know, many homeschool families are looking for opportunities to individualize their child’s education and engage more closely with their learning. They need a platform that allows them to adapt a curriculum to their family’s schedule and circumstances.
With Study.com:

• Learning is engaging – courses are built around short, animated video lessons
• Courses span grades 3-12 and across wide range of core and elective subjects
• No restriction on how many courses members can take
• Members set custom start and end dates to suit their schedule and stay on track
• Free mobile app supports learning any time, anywhere

Homeschooling Parent Magazine selected Study.com for its 2019 Homeschool Friendly Award, giving their seal of approval to our comprehensive and flexible education platform, perfect for homeschooling families.

And in May of 2019, Robert Wilkins sent this:
I am working with Maryville University Online to share a new college guide they created.

The guide is called "Guide for Homeschool Students Transitioning to College" and offers information for homeschooled students on finding and applying to college, which can be a daunting prospect for many students, but it can be especially challenging for homeschooled students. These students face challenges associated with a lack of college counseling, non-traditional high school courses, and a fear of entering college without the same experiences of traditional highschool students.

However, there are a variety of resources available to homeschooled students, and with guidance, finding the route to a successful college career can become much more attainable. The guide we created is offered as a tool to bridge the gap and offer an all-around resource for those who need it.

You can find the guide here: https://online.maryville.edu/blog/guide-for-homeschool-students-transitioning-to-college/

We feel you can never have enough information when it comes to college and helping those who have been homeschooled find what they need is exceptionally important. It would be wonderful if you could consider including our guide along with the amazing resources you already offer.

Robert Wilkins
Outreach Coordinator
Maryville University Online

January of this year, James Corbin from Ivy Panda sent this:
Nowadays, more parents are choosing to educate their kids at home instead of sending them to traditional schools.  As a parent myself, I got interested in the topic. Having done some research, I attempted to sum up the main benefits as well as disadvantages of both public schools and home education in my infographic “Homeschooling 101”.
Here’s the link: https://ivypanda.com/blog/homeschooling-101/

And in Feb., Maggie Monroe of SeatUp sent this:
My name is Maggie and I work with SeatUp. When I saw that your resource page,I wanted to share a piece we recently published called K-12 Resources for Music Educators as a possible addition to your page.
It provides outside resources that could be great in a homeschooling setting.  Things like homemade music instruments and music lesson plans in addition to biographies, history, and works of the great composers. You can find that information for review below:
https://seatup.com/blog/k-12-resources-for-music-educators 

And finally, this recently from Nayari Chifundo of Annuity.org:
This is  Nayari and I'm reaching out on behalf of Annuity.org - a site dedicated to providing the most accurate financial information out there.

We believe when students learn financial literacy at an early age helps them to make astute decisions about their personal finances, smart financial behavior leads to financially secure lives.    

In hopes of promoting financial literacy among students, we have created a comprehensive, easy-to-read guide for students.

You can check out our guide here:
http://www.annuity.org/financial-literacy/students/

I am grateful for the readers who are helped by the resources on my site.  Here is an e-mail I received before Christmas:
"My daughter Piper and I just wanted to reach out and say thank you . Piper had a big quarter art project for art class on Modern Art Movements due a couple weeks back. In her online research she found your page http://www.musicartandenglish.com/music-art-and-english-resources.html - it was so helpful to her I wanted to reach out and thank you. I hadn't seen her that invested in her school work in a long time. I'm grateful she seems to be so committed to art - my father was an artist himself(not by profession, just by hobby) and I'm happy Piper seems to be carrying on his passion.

Last night was Piper's Christmas concert and her art teacher specifically came up to me to tell me what a great job she did on that project. It reminded me that I wanted to email you to thank you for your part in it. When I told Piper I was going to reach out to thank you, she suggested that I let you know about another online resource she found, "People Who Shaped Surrealist Art" at https://www.truepeoplesearch.com/find/content-people-who-shaped-surrealist-art . She thought it would be a good addition to the resources on your page. I know it was helpful to Piper in her research, so hopefully you find some use for it too."

I received an e-mail from Andi who works at Artsy, and she sent this: 
Artsy's mission is to expand the art market to support more artists and art in the world.   We have published an article about Impressionism, which you can find here: What is Impressionism? Our comprehensive Impressionism article traces the history of the movement and its influence, featuring artists like Berthe Morisot, Claude Monet, and Pierre-Auguste Renoir.

One of the foremost ways we reach new audiences is through articles like this one.

I received another e-mail about the importance of good sleep and learning:
https://www.tuck.com/best-bedtime-stories/

At Tuck Sleep, we cover everything sleep-related, from the science behind it to tips for getting a better night’s rest. We also have guides on careers in sleep health and science, articles by medical professionals debunking sleep myths, and articles about why sleep deprivation lowers productivity and creativity at work.

I have sorely neglected this site as of late, going as far as to forget to check my e-mails even!  Thank you to those who have sent in some great links, and have been quite patient with me to receive my reply:

From Quinn Cooley, GBM Books, PO BOX 70207, San Diego, CA 92167:  "I came across this guide from Norwich University, and I love it because of the incredible games, resources and academic links that can make for a really fun, engaging learning experience."

https://graduate.norwich.edu/international-relations/ultimate-guide-to-online-geography-resources-for-educators/

And from Keira of ImprovEDU, 2900 Patterson Fork Road, Chicago IL, 60605:
"The broken link (https://brians.wsu.edu/errors/) is supposed to go to the excellent resource from Professor Paul Brians on common writing errors which has moved to https://brians.wsu.edu/common-errors/.

Perhaps when you update your page you might also be interested in adding this link (https://blogging.im/betterblogposts)? It’s a detailed guide to help people write better when they are publishing online and will be useful to your visitors... Thanks,"

And another from Jean:  "My name is Jean and I’m an Editor at Jen Reviews. I was doing research on things to do in Iceland and just finished reading your wonderful blog post: http://www.musicartandenglish.com/music-and-art-from-around-the-world.html

In that article, I noticed that you cited a solid post that I’ve read in the past: http://www.iceland.is/arts-culture/visual-arts

I just finished writing a guide that is even more detailed, updated and comprehensive on the 100 best things to do in Iceland. It is over 10,000 words and packed with practical tips and advice. You can find it here: https://www.jenreviews.com/best-things-to-do-in-iceland/

If you like the guide we’d be humbl  ed if you cited us in your article. Of course, we will also share your article with our 50k newsletter subscribers and followers across our social platforms. Either way, keep up the great work!"

Ms. Hayes,

My daughter Ava and I just wanted to send you a quick email to say thanks.  Ava is in girl scouts, and is currently working to earn her Painting badge. The girls are learning about the importance and influence of art, how to draw inspiration from the world around them to create their own art, the color wheel, etc. The girls were told to do some of their own research & practice at home and she came across your page http://www.musicartandenglish.com/music-art-and-english-resources.html. Its been so helpful to her we wanted to reach out and thank you. She's really enthusiastic & passionate about this badge because her grandfather loved to paint in his spare time and he used to give her those art sets for Christmas every year and she LOVED them. Art has always been her favorite subject in school.

When I told Ava I was going to reach out & thank you, she suggested I let you know you about another resource she found all about The Color Wheel at https://online.maryville.edu/liberal-arts-degrees/the-art-of-color/ . She thought it would make a good addition to the art resources on your page. I know it was really helpful to Ava in learning, so hopefully you find some use for it too.

Thanks again!:)

Warmly,
Lynette & Ava Brown

You’ve listed some great resources relating to sleep, so I wanted to introduce myself and tell you a little bit about what my team is doing. We’ve been researching the science behind sleep and working on reviewing sleep products to see if they really have the effects that they claim to have. I thought you would be especially interested in this resource guide of ours: https://www.bestmattressreviews.com/sleep-help-children/

Would you consider sharing this information?

Please let me know if you have any questions or feedback.

Best,
Jenny