Every parent will experience it and we were teens once but when it comes to our own kids we have those doubts that they will be able to navigate busy streets and highways. It all becomes about defensive driving. And will it be your car they are driving or will they have their own to start out with?

First what the experts say:

From Edgar Synder  Statics shows there are young drivers between 15- and 20-years-old accounted for 6.4% (13.2 million) of total drivers on the road. An average of nine teens ages 16-19 was killed every day from motor vehicle injuries. 2,739 drivers ages 15-20 were killed and an additional 228,000 were injured in crashes.

So what can you teach them they might not be aware of.

Here are tips I shared with my kids while they were learning to drive.

Buckle Up

First, stay alert, keep your eyes moving

Keep your hands on the wheel.

Watch for slow-moving traffic

Read the road signs

Maintain the proper speed and keep a safe distance

At a stop (you should be able to see the rear tires of a car in front of you)

Becoming a good driver takes time behind the wheel and with experience and some luck, your teen will gain the skills. I had 1 rule for my teens when they first started driving, and that was they were not allowed to have friends with them when they drove for at least 3 months, and when I felt they were driving responsibly I would allow 1 friend.

There are other things that your teen should be warned about when driving:

Being courteous to others, like when they signal to move over, let them in.

Be sure other drivers see you, use your turn signals, don’t assume drivers know what you are doing

Navigating through construction areas: As a driver watch for construction barricades which are bright orange along the road.

If they ever feel upset, frustrated or anger to pull over and take a break.

Be a good example while driving with your teen. As an example, when getting ready to get on the freeway, how to merge into traffic, bringing the car up to speed with traffic or getting off the freeway, to give yourself time for the existing coming up to be in the right lane.

Something I always did was let my kids drive me on errands, so they had time to spend behind the wheel. Every time they spend driving with you being supervised is an opportunity to gain experience. And with some time, your teen will turn into a safe driver, like you!
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