Meagan's trip
So the countdown is on. Meagan is traveling to Washington, D.C. next week and I have been trying to think of everything that she might need to know during her trip. One thing that has come to mind is pay phones and making a collect call. I am not sure when I learned how to make collect calls but I do remember reading the phone book when I was younger so that is maybe how I figured this out.
I started imagine what she might do if she had her purse stolen and had no cell phone and no money. So I asked her what she would do in this situation and she said she would try and find a police officer. Now in D.C. there are plenty of cops but to walk around looking for one is not the answer I was looking for from her. So I explained that she could go to a pay phone and call 911 and call me collect. She had no clue what I was talking about when I said "call collect". So we went over the steps and I assured her that this would be how she would be able to get in touch with me. I explained that she would have to give the FULL number to the operator and then give her name. The operator would call me and I would accept the call and then we would go from there, I explained that I didn't think she would need to do this but just in case she would know how to get in touch with me.
From this conversation I started to wonder about how many other kids know how to do this to call home. It brought to mind the recent case of the 29 year old in California who was abducted when she was 11 years old. It is a tragic story but I wonder if she ever did try to call home and was unable to get through because it was a long distance call. I wonder if it would feel safer to call your parents rather than the police. I honestly don't know and I realize that this is a one in a million case in California but it made me think about a potential life skill I hadn't taught my girls.
I know that Meagan will do well with the whole trip and will have many stories to tell when she returns. And now can rest that she knows how to call collect.
Only a few more days..........
I started imagine what she might do if she had her purse stolen and had no cell phone and no money. So I asked her what she would do in this situation and she said she would try and find a police officer. Now in D.C. there are plenty of cops but to walk around looking for one is not the answer I was looking for from her. So I explained that she could go to a pay phone and call 911 and call me collect. She had no clue what I was talking about when I said "call collect". So we went over the steps and I assured her that this would be how she would be able to get in touch with me. I explained that she would have to give the FULL number to the operator and then give her name. The operator would call me and I would accept the call and then we would go from there, I explained that I didn't think she would need to do this but just in case she would know how to get in touch with me.
From this conversation I started to wonder about how many other kids know how to do this to call home. It brought to mind the recent case of the 29 year old in California who was abducted when she was 11 years old. It is a tragic story but I wonder if she ever did try to call home and was unable to get through because it was a long distance call. I wonder if it would feel safer to call your parents rather than the police. I honestly don't know and I realize that this is a one in a million case in California but it made me think about a potential life skill I hadn't taught my girls.
I know that Meagan will do well with the whole trip and will have many stories to tell when she returns. And now can rest that she knows how to call collect.
Only a few more days..........
posted by sabel at
7:25 AM
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