Crucial Safety Tips Every Parent Should Know How to Protect Our Teen Drivers In Georgia, driving is the second - leading cause of death in teenagers, and it’s time we start discussing how we can protect our young drivers. January is Teen Driving Awareness Month, and it’s an understatement to say that teens face more risk factors than other age groups when it comes to car collisions. As a parent, ensuring the safety of your teenage driver should be a top priority. With newfound independence and the excitement of hitting the road, teens may not realize how inexperience, distracted driving, and unsafe habits can lead to a fatal collision. Implement these essential tips to keep your teen drivers safe. ESTABLISH CLEAR RULES AND EXPECTATIONS Set clear guidelines for responsible driving and ensure your teen knows what’s expected of them behind the wheel. Discuss the importance of following traffic rules, avoiding distractions (especially phone use), and wearing seat belts. It’s essential to reinforce that driving is a privilege with crucial responsibilities. To keep your kids safe, establish a reasonable curfew for your teen to keep them off the roads during the night. Nighttime driving poses additional risks for inexperienced drivers. Additionally, to guarantee your teen isn’t texting and driving, you can use various apps to monitor if they ever use their phone behind the wheel. These two rules alone could save your teen from an accident. LEAD BY EXAMPLE Parents serve as role models. Your actions will influence your teen’s behavior behind the wheel, so always show your teen how you’d never use your phone while driving, speed down the lane, or engage in unsafe driving behaviors. For those with younger children, it’s never too early to set a good example! ENCOURAGE DEFENSIVE DRIVING Defensive driving is critical to staying proactively safe on the road, and courses can instill valuable skills and awareness in new drivers. These courses go beyond basic driver education and can enhance your teen’s ability to anticipate and respond to potential dangers. The road is dangerous for every driver, yet teens are undoubtedly more prone to a wreck due to inexperience and higher rates of distracted driving. When you stay involved with their driving journey and instill these valuable lessons, you can ensure you keep your teen driver as safe as possible.
We live in a world where we’re constantly exposed to new information, thanks to the internet and 24-hour news cycle. Some of this information is certainly helpful, like the latest traffic updates before your morning commute or an article with tips to help your toddler string their first sentence together. But sometimes, it can feel like most of the information we absorb is negative. There’s a whole psychology behind why negative information sells and spreads the fastest, and media conglomerates and online trolls use it to their advantage. So, unfortunately, the online and televised media market is saturated with bad news. Thankfully, this isn’t an accurate reflection of what’s going on in the real world. So, we’re here to show you a couple of positive things happening in the world lately! SCIENTISTS DISCOVERED A HIDDEN OCTOPUS NURSERY. Scientists found an incredible surprise in the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary off the coast of California. There, at the bottom of the thermal spring, were roughly 20,000 octopuses nestled at the bottom in a ball formation with their tentacles facing up — a position the animal uses to protect its eggs. Scientists predict the octopuses chose this spot due to the warm water, making it the perfect location to brood their eggs thanks to the consistent temperature. 2,000 WHITE RHINOS WILL BE RELEASED INTO THE WILD OVER THE NEXT DECADE. Conservation group African Parks recently purchased the world’s largest private white rhino breeding operation, which resulted in their obtaining 2,000 of the near-threatened animals. To help increase the rhino’s natural population, African Parks has developed a plan to rehabilitate and release these rhinos slowly — roughly 100 per year — into the wild over the next 10 years. By doing so, their goal is to “create strategic populations to protect the long-term future of the species.” P ositive S tories F rom the N atural W orld A Brighter Tomorrow:
You can always reach Kevin directly at 404.566.8964 or Kevin@PatrickTrialLaw.com. (If you ever need it, his cellphone is 404.409.3160.)
2 • KEVINPATRICK.LAW I 404.566.5880
Made with FlippingBook Ebook Creator