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Learning how to drive is one of those rites of passages for a teenager — it ranks up there with your first heartbreak and your senior prom as things that you’ll never forget. It’s also one rite of passage fathers tend to dread — we know how stressful it is to try and teach a new teenager how to drive.
If you’re close to reaching that milestone with your teen, here are five tips and tricks to help you survive it with your sanity intact.
Wait Until They’re Ready
In most states, your teen can get their driver’s permit when they turn 15 — but that doesn’t always mean they’re ready to get behind the wheel. If they aren’t ready to drive at 15, don’t push it. Learning to drive isn’t easy for everyone, so if your teens aren’t comfortable or are anxious about driving, it’s best to wait until they’re ready.
Start Small
Don’t throw your teens in the deep end — you’ll end up with a wrecked car and a kid who is terrified of driving. Start small and start slow — side streets, back roads and parking lots — to let them get a feel for how the car handles. Once they start getting a feel for the basics of driving, then it’s time to start moving out into traffic.
Plan for Everything
Your teen won’t only be driving on sunny days. Make sure you prepare them for any road conditions they might encounter. This will vary depending on where you live, but you will need to include:
- Nighttime driving
- Rain
- Snow
- Ice
- Construction zones
- School zones
- Anything else that comes to mind
Helping your kids practice for the kind of conditions they might encounter while they’re driving on their own can help keep them safe behind the wheel.
Set a Good Example
The whole “Do as I say, not as I do” mantra might sound like a good idea to help you raise children, but it works a lot better in theory than in practice. If you drive aggressively or dangerously, your teens could pick up on that and drive the same way.
It’s a general rule that you should drive safer when you have children, anyway, but once they’re old enough to start observing how you drive and committing it to memory, it becomes even more critical. Even if you don’t realize it, your actions are helping to shape the driver they will become.
Stay Calm
If you panic, your new teen driver will panic — and that’s the last thing you need when they are behind the wheel. Even if they’re making a mistake or getting into a dangerous situation, remain calm and correct them without panicking or getting angry. Your teen will respond better and have a better chance of practicing safe driving techniques without getting freaked out every time they get behind the wheel.
Teaching your teenager to drive might be one of the most stressful parts of being a father, but it doesn’t have to be. Just take it slow and make sure you’re setting an excellent example for your new driver, and everything else will fall into place.
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Photo provided by the author.
