My daughter’s friend, Katie Flocken, asked me to address this very important subject.
If you have a 14 or 15 year old child, you need to make them drive. Let them practice all the time, even though driving with a teenager is a pretty unpleasant, white knuckle, pee in your pants experience. As Katie said after driving at night for the first time, “It was really really exhilarating”. Good for you Katie’s mom, that’s how you’ll turn her into a good driver.
Driving is a skill, not a talent. Kids get better every time they get behind the wheel. But if parents don’t have the guts to get in the passenger side, your kids will never ever get better at driving. Then they will turn 16, ask for the keys and drive off like an ignorant maniac. Crashing through mail boxes and bouncing of fire hydrants because they just haven’t had enough time behind the wheel.
True story. Jack had a girlfriend who was sixteen and very spoiled. Her parents couldn’t say no to her and they hated arguing, it was always easier to just say yes. Because they hated conflict they never made her practice driving cause we all know that’s the best place to start an argument. Well, she turned 16, they bought her a beautiful new Mustang and it was totaled in less than a month. They bought her a new Ford F150 and it was so banged up in two months because she’d never practiced parking. After three months it was upside down in a ditch. Thank you Jesus for keeping her safe though her cars were doomed. Finally, after a year of crashing into everything in the county, she got the hang of things.
So parents, have some moxie and backbone. Keep your child and all of us safe. Make your kid practice driving in all kinds of situations.
Just make sure you say a little prayer and put on your seat belt before they turn the key.
I don’t disagree one bit — but the idea of a teen not begging to drive since age 9 is completely foreign to me! I did implement one rule with my son’s practice driving: I didn’t allow him to drive when I was stressed out already, because I didn’t want him to become a “nervous” driver. So far (knock wood) he negoiates the streets and interstate highways of Memphis very well, and has logged several thousand miles at age 16. You nailed it: it’s a skill, one that must be practiced for the good of everyone on the highway!
Thank ya!! I love ya and I’m so happy I get to skip tomorrow for all region!!