Teens and Driving

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Getting ignored, cleaning up messes, and having to repeat everything multiple times. These are all things that the parents of teenagers face every day. If you have a teenager, you know that it is especially difficult to teach him anything of importance, especially driving.

However, since driving is the number one cause of death for teens, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, it is vital that you do whatever you can to get the proper rules and manners of the road ingrained into your teenager’s brain.

But he doesn’t listen to a word I say.

Maybe not. But you need to do everything you can to get through to him. Maybe you can start with some statistics or stories of teenagers getting in brutal car accidents. Fear is sometimes the best way to get through to teenagers. Once he understands how important it is that he drives safely, he will (hopefully) be more open to listening to what you tell him.

So what should I start with?

You are your own secret weapon. For years he has been watching you drive, so hopefully you have been setting a good example. If not, there is no better time to start than now. Don’t give into road rage and follow the laws. Your teenager will be much more likely to follow suit. It wouldn’t hurt to talk him through what you are doing as you drive so he can start to get an idea of how much multi-tasking is involved.

But my teen wants to actually drive.

Of course he does! Start slow. Begin in empty parking lots, work your way up to roads with very little traffic, and eventually get on the freeway. When he is driving, give him praise when he does something correctly. Don’t forget to be as specific as you can when you give instructions. It may be second nature to you, but it is all new to him. It is a challenging process that will test your patience and nerves, but before you know it, he will be a licensed driver. That means you won’t have to give him rides anymore, yippee!

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