Behind The Wheel

My Mom and Dad must be gloating and my kids, especially my daughter with two teens, are now looking at us with a little more respect. 

The Today show aired a feature about the influence of parents on the driving habits of their teen drivers. It seems simple enough to me, since my parents kept close watch on everything we did and getting behind the wheel was no exception. 

Realizing that my first experience behind the wheel alone involved much of the same rules, I set down for my teenagers, made watching this Today Show feature even more satifsying. Guess Mom and Dad do know best. Here are a few of the rules we had in the 60's, we laid down for our teens in the 80's and 90's and apparently are still going strong in the 21st century.

#1  No one else rides in the car with you.

#2  No radio, CD or other distractions.

#3  Use the family car. No car of your own.

New rules for today's teens include no talking on the phone, no texting and no taking phone calls while driving.

Dr. Kenneth Ginsburg is an adolescent specialist, studying more than 6,000 teen drivers, found that teens with strict rules set by the parents were half as likely to be in a crash, twice as likely to wear seat belts and 70% less likely to drink and drive. The study found simple rules are the most effective at keeping teens safe on the road. Since car accidents are the number one killer of young people, it makes sense to lay down a few rules to save a few lives. The study reveals two important messages. One, that parents can have a huge influence on teenagers driving and they should think twice when deciding to give teens their own car.

Although hard to imagine that your child (or grandchild) will grow into a teenager with keys in their hands - it happens all too fast. My advice, keep in mind that teenagers are craving independence. Rules are the best and safest way to drive them there. That's What A Wise Grandma Would Do.