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Why it’s good to learn in stages
Find out why learning in a staged approach can help make your learner a safe driver.
In this topic
Why it’s a good idea to learn to drive in a staged approach
What your learner should practise in each stage
Planning drives with your learner
What a good supervising driver is like
Qualities of a good supervising driver
Choosing a driving instructor
Why it's a good idea to learn to drive in a staged approach
There's more to driving than just knowing roads rules and controlling the car.
Your learner needs to know how to drive safely in many conditions and situations.
Start your learner with simple driving and move to more complex driving situations as they gain experience.
Learning to drive in a staged approach helps your learner:
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What your learner should practise in stage one
Basic car control like how to start, steer and stop safely in quiet areas with no traffic.
This is the shortest stage.
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What your learner should practise in stage two
Getting comfortable driving on quiet roads at low speed, using skills from stage one.
They'll start driving near other road users in this stage.
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What your learner should practise in stage three
Developing their driving skills on busy roads and in more traffic.
They’ll be looking out for and responding to a variety of hazards.
This stage is longer than stage one and two.
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What your learner should practise in stage four
Drive with less help from you to prepare for solo driving.
They’ll get experience in all types of weather conditions and on different types of roads.
They’ll use all the skills they’ve learnt so far to get ready for driving on their own.
This stage can take the longest.
Planning drives with your learner
Your learner needs to get lots of practice in many different conditions and situations to develop safe driving behaviours.
Following a staged approach will help them learn at their own pace.
So plan your drives with your learner to match their experience using the planning guides in each stage.
What a good supervising driver is like
Whether you’re their parent, carer, guardian, older friend or someone else, you’re there to help your learner become a safe driver.
So make sure you get on with them well.
Qualities of a good supervising driver
Driving instructors
Many learners get professional driving lessons when they’re learning to drive.
A driving instructor can give your learner professional advice on safe driving behaviour and tasks.
It's a good idea to seek out the services of a driving instructor in the early stages of the learner period.
When choosing a driving instructor:
