Years ago, you held your little one’s finger and taught them how to walk. A few years down the line, you made sure your kids learned how to ride a bicycle, without losing their balance. And, now, it’s finally time for you to help them learn how to drive a car.
You enroll them in a driving school, encourage them to put their practice to best use while driving and share some tips and experiences with them.
At first, it is natural for them to feel nervous. However, you must help them overcome their fears and equip them with both practical tips and real-world know-how, so that they feel comfortable riding the vehicle on the road and deal with authorities, whenever required.
Here are a few basics that you should instruct your child about, so that they can clear the test in one go and become proud driving license holders.
- Things to Do Before Starting the Car
The driving test inspector will not just see how you drive, but will also observe other small, but essential aspects related to it. So, to ensure that your child doesn’t lose out anywhere, and even otherwise learns how to be an excellent driver, tell him the basics from the start.
Tell them how to adjust their chair, the side and the rear-view mirrors and remove the hand-breaks. Also, emphasize on telling them to always buckle the seatbelt before starting the car.
- Reverse
Another common thing that test inspectors look for in new applicants is whether they know how to reverse the vehicle or not. So, make your child practice reversing the car a good number of hours until he/she does it smoothly, without any jerks.
- Parallel Parking
Given the parking conditions in our country, testing authority individuals pay a lot of attention to whether the new driver knows to park the car correctly or not. They especially ask for showing how to park the vehicle parallelly. For this reason, help your child in practicing parallel parking properly before you go for the driving test.
- Taking turns
Testing authorities keep obstructions in a fashion and then ask you to make turns, alternately from the left once and then from the right. They may use similar patterns to see how well your child can take turns, without touching the obstructions on the way. So, when you make your child practice, make sure to include this step too, to leave no stone unturned in getting the licence.
- Using Parking Brakes
The authority may take the car on a slightly uphill or inclined surface, and then ask your child to park it there. Since, it is challenging to keep the car parked on such a surface, teach your child how to use the parking brakes. Along with this, also teach them how to slowly pick up speed, which gears to use to prevent either jerks or falling backwards or forward with a bang.
Practising this step will help your child in the long run, as they will find no difficulty when they will be driving on flyovers or parking their car in areas with various levels.
- How to Use Other Car Functions
To ensure that your child doesn’t look blank when they’re asked to show how to open the bonnet, dicky or petrol tanker of the car, also teach him about the same. Authorities often check these things to see if the new driver is familiar with the basics of a vehicle other than just driving.
For this purpose, also tell your child about the various metres there in the instrument panel and what purpose they serve. This will make your child aware of the multiple indications that need to be paid heed to.
- How to give the Dipper
Instruct your child about how to use the dipper, and under what situations is it used. The authority may randomly ask about this, so it’s best to prepare your child well in advance for this too. This again will prove to be useful in the long run, like other big and small things.
Ensure your Child’s Security as a Driver
Road accidents have become very common in today’s time. So, along with helping your child get a driving license, also teach him the importance of staying secure against the risks. One part of it would be about you telling him about the need to maintain safety by not crossing speed limits, avoiding overtakes and not jumping the lights. Along with this, you should also tell him about the importance and mandatory requirement to have motor insurance. According to the Motor Vehicle’s Act 1988, it is compulsory for every vehicle plying on the road to have a motor vehicle’s Act. These days, you can very quickly buy car insurance online to get yourself the right cover.
Motor insurance provides you with a cover against third-party liability, road-side assistance service, no claim bonus, and several other such benefits. Having such a policy will give you peace of mind and support against unforeseen challenges.
So, along with other tips, also teach your child how to buy car insurance online. This will be an essential part of your assisting your child yet again, in learning something thoroughly.
I’m a 20-something stay-at-home mother and wife. I have an amazing husband, a beautiful daughter, two loving dogs, and a lazy cat. I wouldn’t change my life for anything! I love to read, listen to music, cook and blog!
It was beneficial that your article brings to light how it is important to teach your children how to parallel park, as instructors will pay attention to how skilled the child is in doing so. My spouse and I are interested in getting our son to begin driving, as he turned 17 recently. We’ll be sure to find a reliable driving school to see how they can aid us in our time of need.