Teaching a teenager to drive is a task that’s dreaded by many parents. But it doesn’t have to be a source of stress for both parent and child. As a parent, it’s your job to plan out driving lessons in advance and participate with a calm, nurturing attitude. Lesson plans help you develop sessions that progressively teach more and more skills over time so as not to overwhelm your teen with too much information up front. Start small. The number of lessons is more important than the length of the lessons, so a 15 minute lesson may be all it takes to learn a new skill for the day. Every teen is different. While some are eager to get behind the wheel, others are more nervous at the thought of controlling such a large machine. Wait to begin lessons until your child is ready and has expressed interest. With calmer nerves, your teen can accomplish more successes without that jittery feeling. To help relieve those nerves, get yourself into the right frame of mind before each lesson. It doesn’t help anyone to begin a lesson with a frustrated attitude, and it certainly makes the situation worse if you ridicule your child. Instead of saying, “you’re driving like a maniac,” you can try the gentler approach of, “did you notice the speed limit sign?” This helps everyone stay calm and it also teaches your teen to pay more attention to his or her surroundings. And just as important, don’t forget to praise a job well done. A good first lesson may not include driving at all. Why? Before your teen can safely drive, it’s important that he or she first becomes familiar with the car and how to control it. While some of these features are merely second nature to you, they may be completely new to your teen so patience is key. Teach your teen how to start/stop the engine, turn on and adjust the headlights, use the windshield wipers, adjust all mirrors, read the dashboard lights and symbols, pump gas, inflate/change the tires and jump the battery. This is also a good time to discuss the steps that must be taken after an accident. Teenage drivers get into the highest number of accidents each year. While you hope for the best, you have to prepare your child for the worst. The next few lessons should introduce the basics of driving. On a bright and dry day, drive your teen to a large, empty parking lot and let him or her take the wheel. Basic techniques include accelerating, braking, using blinkers, turning both directions, backing up, parking in a variety of situations, making a U-turn and making a 3-point turn. With this stage and all subsequent stages of lessons, give clear directions well in advance of when you want your teen to take action so he or she has time to prepare and then follow through. Once your teen is comfortable handling the car, it’s time to hit the open road. Select routes that navigate quiet residential areas and less populated roads to begin with. As skills are learned, you can progress to busier streets and rush hour traffic. This stage is when your teen will learn how to change lanes using turn signals, keep spacing between cars, spot and obey speed limits and traffic signs, navigate various types of intersections, cross railroad tracks, make unprotected turns and, most importantly, hone the skill of awareness. New drivers tend to only look at what’s right in front of them. To develop the skill of awareness, ask your teen questions about what he or she sees further down the road, to the sides and to the rear. This teaches your teen to use mirrors and keep a close eye in all directions. The final stage of lessons teaches your teen to handle advanced road conditions, such as driving on highways, driving at night and driving in rain and other inclement weather. Though it may make you a bit more nervous, your teen must be able to navigate these conditions when fully licensed. There’s no better time to learn than with a permit in hand and you in the passenger seat. Even after you teen has learned a comprehensive set of driving skills, continue to take him or her out for practice sessions. The more practice, the more equipped he or she will be once licensed. And when that license is in hand, be sure to set ground rules such as curfews and the number of passengers allowed in the car. Though it’s hard to enforce, explain how dangerous cell phone usage is while driving and teach your teen to pull over before pulling the phone out of a pocket or purse. The best way to ensure your child’s safety on the road is to prepare him or her with the valuable knowledge that you’ve accumulated from years of driving. If you’ve already taught a teen to drive, what techniques did you find successful?