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Encouraging Heroes. You can be one too.

If you are a parent of a teenager who is almost old enough to drive, you probably have heart palpitations when you think about it. However, there are five things you need to teach your teen about driving to keep him safe and to help you keep your sanity as well.

Safety First

You must start by teaching your teenager the rules of the road to ensure his safety at all times. Teach your teen to obey all traffic laws, road signs and speed limits. Once he knows the basics, you must teach him what to do in case of an accident, when it is safe to move the vehicle after a wreck and how to turn on the emergency lights in case of a problem. While these seem like small things, your teen could easily panic in a tough driving situation, so reviewing procedures is essential.

Beware of Other Drivers

Just because your teen is a safe driver doesn’t mean that everyone else on the road is a safe driver. You have to teach your teen to beware of other drivers on the road and practice defensive driving techniques at all times. This means not following the car in front of him too closely and using his rear view mirrors to watch the cars behind him. You’d hate for your teen to be involved in an accident and have to call a car accident lawyer. Even though a lot of great lawyers are out there, like Bronson Jones & Co, going through that entire process is something best left avoided.

Just Say No to Technology, Drugs, and Alcohol

Teach your child that the car is a no drugs, no alcohol, no technology zone. This means that he should not enter the car, much less drive it, if he has used drugs or alcohol. Your teen should never use his cell phone while driving. Teach him to pull over if he needs to use the phone, and you just might save his life.

Rules about Passengers

Set clear rules about the passengers who should be in the vehicle. Since other teens in the car can distract your teen driver, teach your teen to only have one passenger in the car at a time. It is also a good idea to teach him not to pick up strangers as well.

Consequences Will be Enforced

The final lesson you need to teach your teen is that driving is a privilege, not a right. Teach him that if he is found in violation of your rules about the car, he will lose the privilege to use the car. It doesn’t matter if your teen bought the car himself; you must still set the rules and enforce them.

Don’t be afraid to set clear rules about the use of the car with your teen. The lessons you teach and the rules you enforce will keep your teen safe on the roads.

Earnest Parenting: help for parents who want kids to drive safely.