Keeping Children Safe - babysitters, cars, visits

 The news this week, this month, this year (2025) includes several stories of fatalities to minors.

1 A child left in a hot car for several hours in the USA. 

2 Three girls whose mother tried and failed to get an amber alert in the USA. 

3 An ex pupil who entered a school in Austria with weapons. 

Let's look at each event in turn. Consider what precautions are already in place and which changes might be made.

Babysitting Safety Photos

As a grandparents, when babysitting, I send a photo or a three-second video of the child eating, playing, sleeping, watching TV, every half hour to assure the parents that their child is safe and happy.  No need to worry or rush back. All is well.

Car Safety

Kindergardens' Videos For Security

A kindergarden set up a system so that parents could log in at a specified time and watch, and see a recording, of their own child playing alone (with other children whose faces are not seen) or with a teacher.

Schools & Secure Entrances

I went to talk about animals featured in my book of poems on animals to a priary school in Harrow. The school has a giant wall like a prison, and a double entry gate. 

You need an appointment, authorization from a teacher, and a code number to get in. You have to be met and escorted around the building to the empty classroom during break time to await the arrival of the teacher. 

Another teacher observes you and the lesson. If you leave to go to the toilet the observing teacher takes you there to show you the way and bring you back.

At the end you are escorted out. No parents, strangers, ex-pupils, are allowed to wander in.

Parents' Custody, Visitation Rights, We're Delayed Messages, Amber Alerts

It could be a rule, and condition of Visitation rights, that the other parent sends photos of activities during the visit. 

The parent returning the children should tell the other parent half an hour before the return time that they are on their way. Any delay should be reported, with a reason.

Sponsored Phones

Who would pay for everyone to have a phone, and payment to the network company? Seek sponsors. Police. Government. Lawyers. Go Fund Me. Local McDonalds. The cost is probably less than the cost of mountain a hunt for missing children and parents or carers.

Useful Websites

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14800217/Travis-Decker-search-Colchuk-Lake-Washington-tip.html

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How to Learn Languages Quickly And Easily - lessons from bilingual Americans and multilingual schools

 There are four ways we learn languages.

Hearing Wrods, Rhymes & Songs 

We hear them and recognize sounds and groups with order (grammar). Children hear nursery rhymes and speech.  Adults hear songs and films and conversation. 

Motivation

The motivation could be to speak a language on holiday, to impress people socially, communicate with or understand your family, your boss, your customer. 

Multi-lingual learners of languages are motivated. They go to live in a country and listen to the radio, read newspapers to practise, engage in conversation. They devote a certain number of hours each day. 

Chinese Speech Contest Winners Secrets\

The Chinese winner of the International Speech Contest had been detemined to win. The contest was held in English. She spoke Chinese. She first had to learn English. 

What was her secret? She told us at a club meeting.

TV Programmes Help

She learned English by watching the Americn TV series, Friends for three hous every morning. It took her two years. 

Toastmasters International Clubs Help

In addition, she went to English speaking clubs. She went to Toastmasters International speakers' club meetings to listen to English and practise speaking. Toastmasters International meetings have a language evaluator who teaches the word of the day and gives a report on the good usese of language and suggests improvements. 

The groups welcome guests. Many meetings are online. New clubs are keen to have listeners and potential members. Some people join for networking, so the more the merrier.

Toastmasters has clubs which speak Chinese (Mandarin), Spanish, French and other languages and has manuals in several languages.

Searching For Patterns

Your brain recognizes patterns. If you hear something twice, that could be coincidence. Hear someting three times and the brain starts to record a pattern.

Learning Names By Repeating

Americans learn names by asking your name and repeating it three times. So when I meet an American who knows this system the conversation could go like this. 

His, my name is Kaylie. What is your name? Angela Lansbury - like the actress Angela Lansbury in Murder she wrote. Are you related to the other Angela Lansbury? Do other people ask you if you are related to the actress Angela Lansbury? Are their other people called Angela Lansbury on LinkedIn and Facebook? Will I find you on social media under the name Angela Lansbury?

Useful Websites

https://www.toastmasters.org/magazine/magazine-issues/2023/may/bilingual-clubs-cross-borders#:~:text=In%20other%20cases%2C%20bilingual%20clubs,%2C%20Tamil%2C%20and%20Traditional%20Chinese.

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More On Modernized Masks

 

Flag of Singapore.

I have two friends who teach music in Singapore. One of them told me in detail how the teachers of music must proceed in schools. The children are not allowed to sing, but can use musical instruments. 

Cleaning Shared Musical Instruments

The children use only instruments which can be cleaned quickly and thoroughly. For example, plastic or wooden xylophones. The children are not allowed to touch the instruments, but must play them with two sticks. At the end of the lesson all the sticks are dropped into a container. The teacher disinfects the whole lot with a spray which is issued to the teachers.

The pupils also have a disinfectant wipe for their hands, and items they touch, before they start to play and after they finish.

Improved Masks

The latest masks issued free by the government to everybody are a new design and heavier. They can be washed off, like plastic, unlike washable cloth, so they last longer. They also fit better around the top of the nose and the chin. But that means they are harder to breathe through. The teachers have to wear them all day. Much less waste of resources and landfill. Especially when you compare the new type to the first disposable masks, still available, the concertina type with the plastic ear loops which quickly pull out. 

"They are more effective, but harder to wear. And they make it harder to communicate."

Transparent Masks

 I asked, "What about transparent masks?"

"In the early days at school the teachers could wear those masks which look like a suspended sheet of plastic. But they Don't block out the underneath. At one school for little children (in Singapore) a male teacher wore that kind of mask and a whole cluster of the kids were affected. So they had to close the school temporarily to clean it. Then they banned those masks."

Useful to know. Because I bought one before our son's wedding. I thought they seemed a great idea. They allow a greater area of air to breathe, less pressing against your mouth and nose. I would have thought you could re-design them to make them enclose all around, possibly with a drawstring.

Alas, I missed out. The new masks are no longer available.

Useful Websites

https://www.todayonline.com/world/explainer-n95-kf94-which-mask-best-protecting-against-covid-19-1793866?cid=instagram_ig-profile_social-free_06092018_today

https://www.temasekfoundation.org.sg/news/media-releases/free-for-each-singapore-resident-one-maskpure-air-reusable-antimicrobial-mask-with-n95-grade-filtr

Author

About the author of this blog post

Angela Lansbury

About the Author Angela Lansbury

BIOGRAPHY

Angela Lansbury B A Hons ACG ALB PM5 EH5 DL5 VC5 
The Author of several books including  Etiquette For Every Occasion. Wedding Speeches & Toasts. How to be the Best Man. Quick Quotations. Who Said What When.

Blogs travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com

dressofthedayangela.blogspot.com

translateforfun.blogspot.com

Braddell Heights Advanced Toastmasters Speakers Club Vice President Public Relations (VPPR), Previous President

Join BHA 1st Wednesday 7pm and 3rd Saturday 2 pm Singapore time 

Vice President Public Relations (VP PR) of Tampines Changkat Advanced;

Secretary of weekly online Singapore International Dynamic Toastmasters Speakers’ Club;

Member and past president of Harrovians toastmasters club, UK; Past member of HOD Toastmasters, London. Past member in Singapore of: Toastmasters Club of Singapore (TCS); Tiarel; and Senja Cashew.

More details from Toastmasters International find a club.

Regular attendee at annual Swanwick Writers’ School, England.

Regular attendee at annual Writers’ Holiday, Wales.

Contributor to poetry readings, and after tea courses on: Speaking On Radio To Promote Books; and Plots And Character.

Winner of many club and area speaking contests in the UK and Singapore.

Language advisor to Empire Toastmasters club in Indonesia.

Language and speech workshops in Singapore.

Speaker on radio and TV in England, Scotland, the USA, and Australia.

Compiler of a school course on public speaking for teachers to prepare pupils for school open days with attending ceremonies before government ministers, Singapore.

Former member of Harrow Writers’ Circle, London, and two writing groups in Singapore.

Angela is on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Twitter. She would be delighted to link up with new friends.

 Please share links to your favourite posts.

Books by Angela Lansbury
How to be the best man. (Ward Lock / Cassell.)
Wedding Speeches and Toasts.(Ward Lock / Cassell.)
Unforgettable British Weekends.
Poetry Workshop Workbook.
The Tailor and the Spy. (Lulu.)
Larry The Talking Labrador. (Lulu.)
Writing Poetry for fun.

Quick Quotations

Who Said What When

 

Singapore - lockdown? When?

Singapore flag
I just watched the recording of the Singapore minister's speech. It is all happening from next Tuesday and Wednesday. Businesses will be affected from Tuesday April 7 2020.

Schools are going online Wednesday of next week, from Wednesday April 8 2020. After the trial run of one day this week.

Kindergardens, also.

Basically, food places can serve take away food but no sitting down.

Today, Friday April 3 2020, the supermarkets were super busy.



UK flag
My family in the UK said, "Official instructions are to avoid hoarding. However, in London toilet paper is like money."

I wrote on Facebook:

In a condo where friends and families live, not just swimming pools cordoned off but outdoor seating in a condo. I watched a recording of the announcement which was in English, afterwards in Malay and Mandarin.

To sum up the major points: Workplaces are to send people home except food shops, banks and essential services. Supermarkets and hospitals will be open. Places can deliver food and serve take away but no sitting and eating.

We have the weekend and Monday to make arrangements. Changing to home working from Tuesday.

Schools will be changed to home learning from next Wednesday. Kindergardens too. Except for children of essential workers where the family cannot make other arrangement. For one month minimum.

For exact dates and details you can read government websites
download their apps
or link to the Singapore government on Facebook.

https://www.straitstimes.com/politics/pm-lee-to-address-nation-at-4pm-on-covid-19-situation
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/live-blog-pm-lee-ministerial-task-force-address-nation-on-covid-19-situation
https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/sgunited?fref=mentions

Iceland Takes Action On Palm Oil From Hot Countries - to save orang utangs and prevent haze

Problem
Iceland, not the country, but the UK frozen food company, has planned to ban palm oil. It seems that they are responding to concerns about orang-utangs and the environment in the countries where palm oil is produced.

Equally worrying for those who live or work in Asia is the haze from burning down forests to re-plant palm oil plantations. The smoke billows to neighbouring countries, surprisingly far away.

For days in Singapore some years people wear masks in the street. You can't go outside onto your balcony, or into a traditional kitchen with grilles instead of glass windows, for more than a moment without coughing and coming back into the house.

Outdoor swimming pools close. Use of paddling pools is banned. Schools close and so do colleges and universities with outdoor campuses. Even in places where lessons take place indoors, the building has to close because staff such as gardeners and car park attendants and security at the gate and security patrols and litter pickers cannot be asked to work in the open air.

Restaurants lose business because nobody sits outside so all those tables are empty and the place looks forlorn instead of busy.

I won't go to venues which require long walks from the station or bus stop. I can't swim in the outdoor pool. Walking to the station is a challenge. Also walking uphill, breathing heavily.

Jogging is not possible. I can't walk, can't run, don't want to sit in the open air at a bus stop. I plan my route so that I eliminate walking.

Ex-pats are leaving for a holiday or permanently. My lunch with a friend gets cancelled because she has flown to Australia to evade the haze. I look forward to the time when the haze will be gone, the way that the smog in London, England, disappeared after measures were taken to change fuel burning.

Useful Websites
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-43696948#_=_ BBC report on Iceland and its planned action

Author
Angela Lansbury. British born, Singapore Permanent Resident. Permanent Resident is not a description I have chosen but a government status which you must apply for, like citizenship.