When you are happy that your teenager has mastered the basics of starting and stopping the car, driving in a straight line, and simple left and right turns, you are ready to move on to the next step.
Awareness.
One of the key skills to learn as a new driver is being aware of what is happening around you. That might sound easy for an experienced driver, but when you are learning, you can be concentrating so hard on what you should be doing inside the car that it is easy to overlook these other factors. Part of the awareness process is looking far ahead while you are driving, and the distance you need to look ahead changes with the speed you are travelling. Getting in to the habit of always using your mirrors and checking the blind-spots is good practice at this stage.
A new driver must constantly observe all around their vehicle, as well as keep a check on their speedometer, in order to have all the information they need to make the right decisions. I keep harping on about this, but awareness and good observation skills are the things that will keep your teenage son or daughter safe on the roads for years to come.
The sure sign of a new driver not having full awareness of what is happening around them, is them staring straight ahead for lengthy periods of time or not slowing down in places where you, as an experienced driver, can see potential danger points.
How can you help?
One of the best ways to improve a new driver's awareness is to get them to provide a commentary on the things they see happening around them that presents a potential danger. For example, approaching an intersection, another cars brake lights, approaching a stop sign, or another vehicle indicating that they are about to change lane.
Encourage a new driver to be aware of what is happening well ahead of where they are on the road as this gives them much more time to adjust their driving to any situation.
Best place to practice.
There is really no need or reasons to take a new driver on to a busy highway, so quiet residential streets are the best places to hone your observation and awareness skills. They are quiet enough to have little traffic, but provide enough potential hazards to make new drivers realize how much they need to take in.
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