Planning your practice sessions
A planned approach to learning is essential, especially in the early stages. Each lesson should be matched to your needs and abilities. There are no short cuts to becoming a safe driver.
Your practice sessions will need to cover the following:
Pre-driving checks:
- Checking that the vehicle is safe.
Cockpit drills:
- Knowing the controls, where and when to use them, and how they work.
Getting going:
- signals
- moving off straight ahead
- stopping
- steering
- moving off at an angle
- gear changing
- intersections
- cornering
- negotiating steep gradients
- overtaking
- town driving
- rural driving
- motorway driving
- making an emergency stop
- night driving.
Manoeuvres:
- reversing
- moving off uphill
- moving off downhill
- three-point turns
- parking (parallel and angle).
Observation:
- 2-, 4- and 12-second rules
- hazard identification
- zones of vision.
Seeing, thinking and acting:
- seeing road hazards
- thinking about what might happen
- acting in time to remain safe.
Automotive dynamics – how the vehicle reacts:
- when cornering
- when braking
- on ice
- in wet weather
- on different road surfaces
You should also learn how to handle driving emergencies (such as breakdowns and situations requiring first aid).
