How to Educate Your Teenager to Drive
In this article, I use the pronouns"he" or"him" when I refer to teenage drivers. I do this just for convenience and to avoid confusion. Should you need to teach your teenage girl to push, just substitute"she" or"her" for"he" or"him".
Measure One:
Start out in a very large parking lot that's empty most of the time. In our location, the Civic Center/Fair Grounds is the perfect spot. Begin by getting your teen drive around the perimeter of the parking lot three or more times. Have him go no longer than 20 miles/hour. Get him used to steering the vehicle and using the accelerator and brake pedal.
Then have him clinic parking and backing from a few of the parking stalls for a short time. Then have him drive around the perimeter, but this time, at the contrary direction. Then you can practice parallel parking.
Our aim is to make you a responsible driver with our Expert Trainers & Driving Simulator. Build your confidence to drive with carefully designed courses at Aamco Driving School. Visit the website to get more information about the driving school - Driving Lessons
Next, have your teen make left and right turns. Have him move down and up the massive lot, telling him to turn at irregular periods. Make sure he uses his turn signs. Emphasize both hands on the wheel, eyes straight ahead, and the old hand turning style.
Also, pretend there are stoplights and stop signals. Tell your teen exactly where they are and do this well ahead of time. Teach him the difference between four-way two-way and stops stops. Tell him how red and yellow lights differ. Also, let him know how long yellowish lights usually survive and if he needs to slow down or move through a yellow light. After a time, this will develop into a judgment call on his part.
Practice at the parking lot for the first two or three hours of driving time. Your teenager needs to familiarize himself with all the car's controls and become confident in their own ability to steer the vehicle, use the reverse gear, accelerate, and slow the car down to a halt. Teach him also how to put the parking brake and use his seat straps.
Once you think your teen is ready for some visitors, it's time to take him county or lightly trafficked country roads.
Step Two:
Find county or country roads which are lightly trafficked and take your teenager out there. Stop by the side of the road and change drivers.
Then have your teen drive up and down those streets. Attempt to find an area which has at least four or five state roads in a row. Then have him go down one, make either a right or left turn, and move up another street. Talk about how he must accelerate up a hill and look out for cars he might be unable to see. Conversely, let him know why he should slow down going down a mountain, even when he sees no traffic arriving.
On country or county streets, you should not run into a lot of traffic. Where we live, we see largely farming vehicles(tractors, etc) or trucks. Your teen will receive his first taste of pace as you encourage him to go at 50 miles per hour or a bit faster than the posted speed limit. Have him work on using the brake far enough in advance so he can come to a smooth stop at an intersection. Make sure your teenager signals for a left or right turn at least 30 feet prior to any junction.
Have him also practice searching for cross traffic in two-way stops. Make sure that he understands he should quicken coming out of a turn so he can leave an intersection as speedily as possible. Tell him not to be concerned about cars behind himif you are on a two-lane road, the car behind can usually pass safely, especially if the road is right.
Practice with your teen at least five hours on those lightly trafficked county streets. When you feel he is prepared, it's time to get a few in-town driving with normal traffic.
Step Three:
We live in a small very compact town. It's easy to get from one end to another in a quarter hour or so, even in case you catch all the red lights. Regardless of what type of town you reside in, now is the time for your teenager to select destinations and also to drive .
Have him drive to your favorite grocery shop. Once there, have him park. Then have him back up and find his way out of this lot. Then have him push to your standard gas station. He should find out how to fill the gasoline tank.
Then have him drive to his college. If you push him to school, have him push there and change drivers as you drop off him. Make sure to pull off the road into the school parking lot before you change drivers. If you pick him up from college, he could even drive home.
Pick other nearby destinations, such as shops, churches, dentists, shopping malls, restaurants, etc.. If he doesn't know how to get to a location, try to give him the simplest way. Have him push ANYWHERE you need to go.
The entire idea for this step would be to give your adolescent his first taste of needing to push traffic in addition to dealing with stoplights. Try to not have your teen drive any more than half an hour at a time at this stage.
Once he's completed at least another five hours in average visitors, it is time to move on to more challenging things. By the way, any hour sums I provide in this article are minimum; you can have your adolescent drive more for every step if you think he needs the experience.
Step Four:
Depending on where you live, the weather may differ from day today. Have your teenager drive in the rain, while it is snowing, at dusk/dawn and when it is totally dark. Make sure that he knows how to use his headlights. Show him the way to flip on high beams along with his fog lights and when/how to utilize them. Emphasize the prime significance of signaling for a turn in unfavorable conditions.
Work on changing lanes. For instance, if you would like your teen to make a ideal turn, suggest he get into the right-hand lane. Make sure he uses his rearview mirror, the appropriate facet mirror, and that he takes a quick peek over his shoulder before he makes the lane shift.
Have him tell you what the speed limit is at certain area and work with him to remain near this speed. Inform him that he should drive as quickly because it is safe, not always the speed limit. Suggest he go a bit quicker on a straight road with dry conditions and traffic. Make sure he knows why he must drive a little slower than the speed limit in wet conditions, in the dark or in dusk/dawn, or at very heavy traffic.
By this time, your teen should be able to drive about one hour at a time.
Once he's another five hours or more under his belt, it's time to proceed to more challenges.
Step Five:
Now is the time to begin taking your teen through some traffic challenges. Be sure to mix these struggles with some effortless traffic so he will stay confident in his driving ability.
Find construction zones and function with your teen about how to negotiate his way through these areas. Emphasize that he must move slowly. In our town, road construction appears to happen in the spring and summertime.
Also, have him drive in what you understand are very heavily-trafficked places. Have him push these during morning and evening"rush" hours, if possible. Also, try lunchtime, usually between 11 am and 1 pm. Weekend times are good times too. The entire idea is to get him used to heavy and unpredictable traffic patterns.
See how he reacts to unexpected happenings. What does he do or say when someone cuts off him? How about if he gets behind someone moving too slowly? What exactly does he do or say? An important thing to tell him would be to expect the unexpected, no matter what.
You need to remember that so long as you're in the car with him, your teenager is going to respond the way he understands you'd approve. However he will drop his"mask" every now and then so you can find an notion of what he will do if he starts to drive .
Speak to your teen about staying calm and offer him your very best thoughts on what he must do when faced with a particular driving situation.
Step Six:
Now that your adolescent has had at least 30 hours(or more) of expertise driving within the county or city, it is time to carry him out on the freeway.
Depending on where you live, this may be no big thing. The closest large cities to us are San Diego, Phoenix, and Las Vegas. I wouldn't want my worst enemy to drive in Las Vegas or Toronto(in Ontario, Canada). Those two cities have some of the worst people I've ever noticed. Chicago is quite bad also. Surprisingly, New York is not too bad in any way.
No matter where you reside, your teenager should get used to entering a freeway, exiting an expressway, studying how to maneuver a vehicle or truck securely, staying in his lane, moving in a steady pace and so on. Where we live, you do not need the freeway unless you're heading from town. But if you reside in Southern California or Phoenix or any large metropolitan area, you really do need experience using the freeway or you would never have the ability to go anywhere.
Bottom line: if you live in a large city, you should focus a minimum of 30 hours or more just about the freeway. Give your teen hints on how to prevent the worst traffic. Tell him simple ways for a specific destination and what times are best. He'll also figure out his own approaches to deal with heavy traffic.
Conclusions:
In accordance with most driver education courses, your teen needs at least 50 hours of driving experience during the six months that he retains his learner's permit. Only then is he ready to take the driver's test to get his routine driver's license. I concur wholeheartedly, except I believe 50 hours will be a minimum. The more hours your teen spends behind the wheel, the better off he will be.
So get out there with him and push around. There's no substitute for actual experience. The more your teenager practices, the greater the driver he will be.
Be sure to discuss alcohol abuse, medications, and some other distractions while he is driving. Always stress the value of maintaining both eyes on the road and both hands on the wheel.
Let your teenager know what can happen if he's pulled over for a DUI/DWI. Invite him to stay away from alcohol and drugs. Tell him that if he belongs to a party and has a couple of drinks or smokes marijuana, he should call you. Obviously, you need to be inclined to pick him up, no questions asked. If your partner agrees, she/he can proceed with you and push your teen's car home. Or you may go back the next day with your teen and he can drive his own car home. When he can call you, congratulate him on being mature enough to realize when he can't drive safely.
Additionally, talk to your teen about using his cell phone while he pushes. If he likes to text message or speak to people while he's driving, set his car so that he can pair his cell phone with the car radio. He can speak to someone on his cell phone but has the potential to keep both hands on the wheel and eyes on the street. General Motors versions can have this ability built. I have also heard of a aftermarket plug-in for different versions. But this if for talking only, maybe texting. Tell your teenager how harmful it is on text message while he is driving. Let him know he must pull over to read and especially type a text message.
I've also told my son that he shouldn't smoke or eat while he pushes. Luckily, he does not smoke and I hope he does. I have never noticed him trying to eat something while he drives. I've heard of individuals who try to do three different things while they push. One time my wife saw a girl putting on her makeup and cleaning her hair while she was driving at freeway speed!
Additionally, he indicates that he push only trusted friends around in his car. You need to know these friends and their parents if possible. It is vital that the parents think the exact same way you do. Hopefully, your teen is not easily influenced by his peers.
Recommend to your teen he shouldn't drive when he is angry, has a great deal on his mind, or is simply tired. Advise him that it's far better to walk up and down for some time to calm himself down. If he's exhausted or tired, let him know that he shouldn't drive in any way. Here is another instance he may call you or a friend.
After at least 50 hours of driving experience, you might feel your teen is not emotionally mature enough to drive . Let him know why you think that and everything he wants to do to correct your impression. Also, if you do not feel he's skillful enough to drive on his own yet, have a different driving instructor spend five or more hours with your teen. If he comes to the same conclusion, ask the driving expert what ought to be done.
I've seen"how to drive" DVD's that are made by teens for teenagers. I am giving one of these for my son for his 16th birthday. I can't wait to see it with him. Just look on the internet to see them. . These are great when you've got a teen that doesn't read much or learns better with visual cues.
It's my opinion that you ought to encourage your kid to be as independent of you as possible. If you know in your heart your teen will be a fantastic driver, then let him drive! Do not hold him back because of your insecurities. Your teen must develop and has to be able to function and browse the world without you. Give him the tools to do so, he will appreciate it later. Perhaps if he's instructing his own adolescent to drive!
Measure One:
Start out in a very large parking lot that's empty most of the time. In our location, the Civic Center/Fair Grounds is the perfect spot. Begin by getting your teen drive around the perimeter of the parking lot three or more times. Have him go no longer than 20 miles/hour. Get him used to steering the vehicle and using the accelerator and brake pedal.
Then have him clinic parking and backing from a few of the parking stalls for a short time. Then have him drive around the perimeter, but this time, at the contrary direction. Then you can practice parallel parking.
Our aim is to make you a responsible driver with our Expert Trainers & Driving Simulator. Build your confidence to drive with carefully designed courses at Aamco Driving School. Visit the website to get more information about the driving school - Driving Lessons
Next, have your teen make left and right turns. Have him move down and up the massive lot, telling him to turn at irregular periods. Make sure he uses his turn signs. Emphasize both hands on the wheel, eyes straight ahead, and the old hand turning style.
Also, pretend there are stoplights and stop signals. Tell your teen exactly where they are and do this well ahead of time. Teach him the difference between four-way two-way and stops stops. Tell him how red and yellow lights differ. Also, let him know how long yellowish lights usually survive and if he needs to slow down or move through a yellow light. After a time, this will develop into a judgment call on his part.
Practice at the parking lot for the first two or three hours of driving time. Your teenager needs to familiarize himself with all the car's controls and become confident in their own ability to steer the vehicle, use the reverse gear, accelerate, and slow the car down to a halt. Teach him also how to put the parking brake and use his seat straps.
Once you think your teen is ready for some visitors, it's time to take him county or lightly trafficked country roads.
Step Two:
Find county or country roads which are lightly trafficked and take your teenager out there. Stop by the side of the road and change drivers.
Then have your teen drive up and down those streets. Attempt to find an area which has at least four or five state roads in a row. Then have him go down one, make either a right or left turn, and move up another street. Talk about how he must accelerate up a hill and look out for cars he might be unable to see. Conversely, let him know why he should slow down going down a mountain, even when he sees no traffic arriving.
On country or county streets, you should not run into a lot of traffic. Where we live, we see largely farming vehicles(tractors, etc) or trucks. Your teen will receive his first taste of pace as you encourage him to go at 50 miles per hour or a bit faster than the posted speed limit. Have him work on using the brake far enough in advance so he can come to a smooth stop at an intersection. Make sure your teenager signals for a left or right turn at least 30 feet prior to any junction.
Have him also practice searching for cross traffic in two-way stops. Make sure that he understands he should quicken coming out of a turn so he can leave an intersection as speedily as possible. Tell him not to be concerned about cars behind himif you are on a two-lane road, the car behind can usually pass safely, especially if the road is right.
Practice with your teen at least five hours on those lightly trafficked county streets. When you feel he is prepared, it's time to get a few in-town driving with normal traffic.
Step Three:
We live in a small very compact town. It's easy to get from one end to another in a quarter hour or so, even in case you catch all the red lights. Regardless of what type of town you reside in, now is the time for your teenager to select destinations and also to drive .
Have him drive to your favorite grocery shop. Once there, have him park. Then have him back up and find his way out of this lot. Then have him push to your standard gas station. He should find out how to fill the gasoline tank.
Then have him drive to his college. If you push him to school, have him push there and change drivers as you drop off him. Make sure to pull off the road into the school parking lot before you change drivers. If you pick him up from college, he could even drive home.
Pick other nearby destinations, such as shops, churches, dentists, shopping malls, restaurants, etc.. If he doesn't know how to get to a location, try to give him the simplest way. Have him push ANYWHERE you need to go.
The entire idea for this step would be to give your adolescent his first taste of needing to push traffic in addition to dealing with stoplights. Try to not have your teen drive any more than half an hour at a time at this stage.
Once he's completed at least another five hours in average visitors, it is time to move on to more challenging things. By the way, any hour sums I provide in this article are minimum; you can have your adolescent drive more for every step if you think he needs the experience.
Step Four:
Depending on where you live, the weather may differ from day today. Have your teenager drive in the rain, while it is snowing, at dusk/dawn and when it is totally dark. Make sure that he knows how to use his headlights. Show him the way to flip on high beams along with his fog lights and when/how to utilize them. Emphasize the prime significance of signaling for a turn in unfavorable conditions.
Work on changing lanes. For instance, if you would like your teen to make a ideal turn, suggest he get into the right-hand lane. Make sure he uses his rearview mirror, the appropriate facet mirror, and that he takes a quick peek over his shoulder before he makes the lane shift.
Have him tell you what the speed limit is at certain area and work with him to remain near this speed. Inform him that he should drive as quickly because it is safe, not always the speed limit. Suggest he go a bit quicker on a straight road with dry conditions and traffic. Make sure he knows why he must drive a little slower than the speed limit in wet conditions, in the dark or in dusk/dawn, or at very heavy traffic.
By this time, your teen should be able to drive about one hour at a time.
Once he's another five hours or more under his belt, it's time to proceed to more challenges.
Step Five:
Now is the time to begin taking your teen through some traffic challenges. Be sure to mix these struggles with some effortless traffic so he will stay confident in his driving ability.
Find construction zones and function with your teen about how to negotiate his way through these areas. Emphasize that he must move slowly. In our town, road construction appears to happen in the spring and summertime.
Also, have him drive in what you understand are very heavily-trafficked places. Have him push these during morning and evening"rush" hours, if possible. Also, try lunchtime, usually between 11 am and 1 pm. Weekend times are good times too. The entire idea is to get him used to heavy and unpredictable traffic patterns.
See how he reacts to unexpected happenings. What does he do or say when someone cuts off him? How about if he gets behind someone moving too slowly? What exactly does he do or say? An important thing to tell him would be to expect the unexpected, no matter what.
You need to remember that so long as you're in the car with him, your teenager is going to respond the way he understands you'd approve. However he will drop his"mask" every now and then so you can find an notion of what he will do if he starts to drive .
Speak to your teen about staying calm and offer him your very best thoughts on what he must do when faced with a particular driving situation.
Step Six:
Now that your adolescent has had at least 30 hours(or more) of expertise driving within the county or city, it is time to carry him out on the freeway.
Depending on where you live, this may be no big thing. The closest large cities to us are San Diego, Phoenix, and Las Vegas. I wouldn't want my worst enemy to drive in Las Vegas or Toronto(in Ontario, Canada). Those two cities have some of the worst people I've ever noticed. Chicago is quite bad also. Surprisingly, New York is not too bad in any way.
No matter where you reside, your teenager should get used to entering a freeway, exiting an expressway, studying how to maneuver a vehicle or truck securely, staying in his lane, moving in a steady pace and so on. Where we live, you do not need the freeway unless you're heading from town. But if you reside in Southern California or Phoenix or any large metropolitan area, you really do need experience using the freeway or you would never have the ability to go anywhere.
Bottom line: if you live in a large city, you should focus a minimum of 30 hours or more just about the freeway. Give your teen hints on how to prevent the worst traffic. Tell him simple ways for a specific destination and what times are best. He'll also figure out his own approaches to deal with heavy traffic.
Conclusions:
In accordance with most driver education courses, your teen needs at least 50 hours of driving experience during the six months that he retains his learner's permit. Only then is he ready to take the driver's test to get his routine driver's license. I concur wholeheartedly, except I believe 50 hours will be a minimum. The more hours your teen spends behind the wheel, the better off he will be.
So get out there with him and push around. There's no substitute for actual experience. The more your teenager practices, the greater the driver he will be.
Be sure to discuss alcohol abuse, medications, and some other distractions while he is driving. Always stress the value of maintaining both eyes on the road and both hands on the wheel.
Let your teenager know what can happen if he's pulled over for a DUI/DWI. Invite him to stay away from alcohol and drugs. Tell him that if he belongs to a party and has a couple of drinks or smokes marijuana, he should call you. Obviously, you need to be inclined to pick him up, no questions asked. If your partner agrees, she/he can proceed with you and push your teen's car home. Or you may go back the next day with your teen and he can drive his own car home. When he can call you, congratulate him on being mature enough to realize when he can't drive safely.
Additionally, talk to your teen about using his cell phone while he pushes. If he likes to text message or speak to people while he's driving, set his car so that he can pair his cell phone with the car radio. He can speak to someone on his cell phone but has the potential to keep both hands on the wheel and eyes on the street. General Motors versions can have this ability built. I have also heard of a aftermarket plug-in for different versions. But this if for talking only, maybe texting. Tell your teenager how harmful it is on text message while he is driving. Let him know he must pull over to read and especially type a text message.
I've also told my son that he shouldn't smoke or eat while he pushes. Luckily, he does not smoke and I hope he does. I have never noticed him trying to eat something while he drives. I've heard of individuals who try to do three different things while they push. One time my wife saw a girl putting on her makeup and cleaning her hair while she was driving at freeway speed!
Additionally, he indicates that he push only trusted friends around in his car. You need to know these friends and their parents if possible. It is vital that the parents think the exact same way you do. Hopefully, your teen is not easily influenced by his peers.
Recommend to your teen he shouldn't drive when he is angry, has a great deal on his mind, or is simply tired. Advise him that it's far better to walk up and down for some time to calm himself down. If he's exhausted or tired, let him know that he shouldn't drive in any way. Here is another instance he may call you or a friend.
After at least 50 hours of driving experience, you might feel your teen is not emotionally mature enough to drive . Let him know why you think that and everything he wants to do to correct your impression. Also, if you do not feel he's skillful enough to drive on his own yet, have a different driving instructor spend five or more hours with your teen. If he comes to the same conclusion, ask the driving expert what ought to be done.
I've seen"how to drive" DVD's that are made by teens for teenagers. I am giving one of these for my son for his 16th birthday. I can't wait to see it with him. Just look on the internet to see them. . These are great when you've got a teen that doesn't read much or learns better with visual cues.
It's my opinion that you ought to encourage your kid to be as independent of you as possible. If you know in your heart your teen will be a fantastic driver, then let him drive! Do not hold him back because of your insecurities. Your teen must develop and has to be able to function and browse the world without you. Give him the tools to do so, he will appreciate it later. Perhaps if he's instructing his own adolescent to drive!
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