If the time has come for your teen to drive, fret not. Though you might be apprehensive and a bit nervous about teaching them the ways of the road, the process is as easy and as stress-free as it was when your parents taught you. Since you will be the person that your teen learns the most from, it’s imperative that you refresh yourself on the rules of the road before you start teaching. To help smooth out the process and ensure that your teen is comfortable and ready to hit the road, here are some tips that we recommend you take advantage of.
Brush Up On Driving Knowledge
It’s common knowledge that the vast majority of long-time drivers have little-to-no understanding of the actual rules of the road. As it has been quite some time since your courses and driving test, it’s best to brush up on the current rules so that your teen doesn’t think that you’re a careless driver. In fact, some states, like Connecticut, make parents take a two-hour refresher course before they can legally teach their teen how to drive. There are numerous resources out there to help you relearn how to properly drive. Take advantage of them.
Take Baby Steps
Instead of throwing your teen into the middle of rush hour traffic the first time they jump behind the wheel, start small. Begin with learning the basic operations of the car, like how to turn it on, setting the mirrors, the seatbelt, how to turn, use the blinkers, so on and so forth. Once they have the basics out the way, let them take the car out for a slow spin around an empty parking lot. You can slowly expand the range and environments as they progress. Remember that slow is smooth and smooth is fast.
You might also like: Make This Chicken Pot Pie For Dinner
Model Good Behavior
You have probably picked up a few bad habits here and there throughout the years. If you’re going to be teaching your teenager they mustn’t pick up on those habits and use them themselves. So, when you do drive with your teen, be sure to do everything properly and explain why and how you are doing certain things. Keep in mind that your teen is observing nearly everything that you do.
Disclaimer: The stock image is being used for illustrative purposes only, and it is not a direct representation of the business, recipe, or activity listed. Any person depicted in the stock image is a model.