I am wondering what you have done to help your child to attain this benchmark of life? The all important driver's license!!!
We used the AAA program because it lowered our insurance to do so. A friend is using drivers ed in a box and likes it much better. It seems to be a better program.
My guys took an on line course and we were so impressed with it that my dh worked for them part time as a driving instructor after he graduated from training.
For most of our children, I taught them to drive. In each case, I drove a few miles from home, then stopped and swapped seats with them. That particular road continues for miles and miles and is quite straight - but it has quite a few traffic lights. Within 10-15 minutes, I could sense they were feeling just fine. Let me tell you, though, that it's not always easy. With boys in particular, they can really stretch my (and their) limits of patience. Teenage boys just don't like being told what to do, and I'm a stickler for keeping them within the speed limit. For our fourth child, he's 18 but to date has not wanted to learn. For him, we decided to pay for a couple of driving lessons, and the first one was today. It really did give him some confidence. After the second lesson, my wife and I will take over and continue the teaching - because lessons are expensive.
I must confess that, when I came to this country over 23 years ago, I found it frustrating to have to take a driver's test in each state to which we moved. In Britain, you have to take and pass a very extensive driving test, and the state tests here were trivial in comparison. In Florida, I showed up at the vehicle center to take the written test. Arrogantly assuming I didn't need to read "the book", I launched straight into the written test. The first few questions were easy. For example, they showed a cross and asked whether this meant left turn, right turn, crossroads, or stop. I was on a roll. OK, one or two questions were worded confusingly, but I thought I was doing just fine. Then I came to the second half of the test: When you change your last name, which of the following people must you contact: the sheriff, the local police department, the driver's center, or a notary? I had no clue and guessed. My confidence began to sap and frustration was setting in. Then I got my score: 14 out of 20 - and I needed 15 to pass. So I looked at some of the answers. After the fact, one of the confusingly worded questions suddenly became clear. Hot, frustrated, and irritated, I couldn't help myself. I snapped at the examiner that the question was really easy - so easy, in fact, that Mickey Mouse could get it right. The examiner looked at me calmly and replied, "Maybe, sir, but you got it wrong!" I was well and truly put in my place. The moral of the story, I suppose, is that your teen should get to know every little detail in "the book". Unlike me, they shouldn't take it lightly or just try to wing it. Even though they may never need to know what to do when changing their name, for the test they will need to know.
My dh has given all of our dc driving lessons. We did/do however require our children to take a defensive driving course. It teaches them basic rules of the road. It also teaches defensive driving skills; like what to do if you have a blowout while driving, driving in adverse conditions, etc......One other thing, my dh also requires that each child knows how to change a tire and check and change the oil. LR
Hubby will teach our kids. Each of them begin learning to be a responsible vehicle owner at a pretty early age by learning maintanence and repair. Garrett has helped to rebuild a motorcycle, pull an old 360 engine that they are going to rebuild, change the fuel pump in my truck, put a new exhaust on the car and can change brakes, tires, oil, and even flush the radiator. For each of their first vehicles, our plans are to let the kids pick an older vehicle and they will rebuild it from the ground up. We have already started looking for Garrett's first car... he want's an old Buick. As far as the actual act of driving, the kids have lots of motorized goodies here (gocarts, motorcycles, 4-wheelers, tractors), so they have quite a bit of experience with learning to respect something that has more power than you do.
We took online classes, then local driving instructions. In between he had tolog so many hours of practice before the next class. There wree three driving lessons and they tested him on eachh one, he did great! came to passing the test, I think he failed once and passsed second time.
My dh taught our oldest to drive, 99.99%. The first time I drove with my oldest he scared me to death that when I got out of his truck my knees were shaking. He turned the corner which was icy and snow packed at a rate of speed that was meant for dry roads. Well, needless to say, I was using my PRETEND passenger brakes and my PRETEND passenger steering wheel to make him slow down. He got so upset he popped the clutch on purpose and stalled it out in the middle of the road and said, "Mom this isn't going to work". I told him, "Son, you are right, your father can teach you how to drive, you frighten me too much". I know he had frightened other drivers because he would approach the stop sign to the highway and then stomp on the brakes and the drivers on the highway thought he was going to run the stop sign. Our youngest son was easier to teach because he had been driving in our back yard for years because he couldn't wait to get his license. I am not the most patient person when it comes to being in the passenger seat, so my dh got that job!
wow, my ds was fine, I did most of the driving even though I wanted dh to do it time just did not allow it, so I let himdrive me to church and to store, that way he got all the right kinds of learnings, highway and local/
I did the training for our oldest, then he took a driver's training course. WA State doesn't accept the on-line stuff, so we just skipped it and he took the course last summer. My dh is the one that got all flustered when ds was driving. Since it didn't bother me, I did it---I thought it was fun! DS really enjoyed the driver's training class, so I'm glad we did that---well, I think it's required here anyway. He still has a permit, and is studying now to get his license.
wow, ours has to be online pretty much here, then you get your complete report card in the mail you take that wiht you to the driving school to give them as proof. Then they sign up for driving 3 lessons for like 275 I think it was? the course work was only like 75-80 and then we had to practice with him, basically instruct him and make sure he learned what he read and scored high on lol. The schools have to qualify with the DMV I think too so they are legit not some kid saying you did it right. Then you take all that stuff paperwork , we had a folder, to DMV and take driving test there.
I didn't charge for the course work I did with ds! The class, (yes, definitely DMV qualified!) was $275 and it was for 6 weeks of 3 times a week classes and driver's training. It was good, cuz dh and I learned some things that have been updated that we didn't know. The main thing is that, because of the air bags in cars now, they say NOT to drive with hands at the 10 o'clock and 2 o'clock positions (which is what both dh and I learned), since the force of the bag coming out could break your arms. They said to drive at the 9 and 3 positions. I did not know that!
My oldest ds really didnt have an interest in driving when he learned. I don't have the patience to sit quietly in the passengers seat, I am a backseat driver. I think my dh was cut out for drivers training and I would do the class room teaching. When he was a part time driving instructor the student could never get him excited no matter how bad they were doing. He only had to hit his REAL passenger brake a few times. My youngest really wanted to drive so he was easy to teach.
that sounds like what my nephew was going to do too..My sis flaked on him though, we were all set to pay for it for him but she never got him signed up so we could send the $ to the company teaching him not her. She would have borrowed from it inadvertantely so we did not want to send it. Now he will be 18 in ahalf a year so they will just wait.
mamabear, my dd wants to learn now too , with her I am more wanting someone else to teach her, cause she will make me nervous, but my ds was calm about most of the instrutions I gave him. I tried to talk like my dad when I did it, remembering what he told me about rules and regs. Whats most important to learn and all that so that was probablly part of it right there.
Florida Virtual provides it for free for FL residents. The class they take covers Drivers Ed and the drug and alcohol class that they require.
