Last week we reviewed the steps that need to be taken in order for your teen to obtain a driver’s license.
Being a family tech website, we love apps, so we searched for apps that will help you and your teen through the driver’s ed process.
Preparing for the Driver’s Written Test
Fortunately, there are A LOT of apps out there that help teens prepare for the DMV written test. Teens love their phones and the option to use an app to learn is preferred over being at a desk.
CA DMV app – (Android) if you live in California, the DMV has an app to help teens prepare for the written tests with sample tests as well as videos, like Top 10 Reasons for Failing the Driving Test. The app is also useful for finding local DMV offices, renewing vehicle registration, making appointments, and pointing you to other services on their website. DMV’s from other states have similar apps.
California DMV Practice Test Prep 2017 – (iOS) another California-focused app with over 360 questions, including 100+ traffic signs to help teens prepare for the written test
Drivers Ed Free: DMV Permit Practice Driving Test – (iOS) free study questions to help prepare for permit test – includes information for all 50 states. Gives the option to take mock tests and practice by topics. Uses an intelligent learning system to assess latest scores and serve up questions in areas where more practice is needed.
Driver’s Ed – (iOS) by Brainscape – has over 200 flashcards on most common questions across the country. Designed to aid memorization in the areas of defensive driving, road safety, street signs, as well as the most important rules and regulations.
Drivers Ed Apps
Last week we discussed the online drivers Ed process and ways you can save money when choosing one. There are a number of online drivers ed companies that also have apps where teens can learn about your state’s driving rules and regulations. Here’s a list of some apps that offer drivers ed as a part of their app (as an in-purchase cost).
Aceable – completely mobile app students can use to get the online drivers education they need to receive their permit. Available for teens in Texas, California, Nevada, Pennsylvania
Drivers.Ed California – (iOS) this app complements their online learning class to aid students in preparation for their DMV written test
DMV Hub – 2018 Driving Test – tons of questions from recent DMV permit tests – for all 50 states
California DMV Test – free test questions with an in-app purchase of mobile drivers ed available (iOS only)
Logging Driving Time
We found a couple of apps to help you log the time your teen is driving. In California, teens need to drive 40 hours during the day and 10 hours at night.
These apps will help track driving time and when it occurred.
RoadReady – (iOS, Android) can log driving for multiple teens on several devices and monitors progress against state requirements. Driving log can be exported and printed to take to the DMV.
Teen Driving Log – (iOS) logs data across multiple devices, shows how many required driving hours left to go, allows teens to log the types of skills learned, and even share their progress across their social media channels. Data can be exported into a spreadsheet for the DMV.
When Your Teen Drives Alone
The idea of your teen driving with their newly-minted driver’s license alone, without you, can be a nerve-wracking event, especially when driving at night. There’s always that thought, “I wonder if s/he got to the beach OK,” or “has s/he started heading home from the prom yet?”
Of course, there’s always the questions like, is he speeding? Is she still driving around our community or has she wandered off somewhere else? Here are a few apps to help give parents some ease of mind.
Life360 – this has been my favorite family app for years. It helps me keep track of each family member (whether they drive or not) simply by having the app on each of our phones. Better yet, you can set boundaries around certain locations or even cities so you know when your teen has arrived or left a location.
For example, I set one around Disneyland (a half an hour away from home) so I know when my daughter arrives and leaves the happiest place on earth. It gives me some assurance that she’s where she should be. Their Driver Protect in-app purchase will send you reports of phone usage, rapid acceleration, top speed, and hard breaking during a drive as well. This feature also offers crash detection with an immediate emergency response.
Drive Mode – a safe driving app that helps teens (and parents) be more focused drivers by reducing phone distractions. Its Do Not Disturb mode can ignore incoming calls and messages. It will automatically open and close with Bluetooth pairing and allow drivers to reply to a message or text using voice commands. Incorporates navigation apps like Google, Waze, and HERE maps as well as Pandora, Spotify, Google Play Music, and more as well as Google Now and Google Assistant.
There are even some car manufacturers who have added special controls and tracking so you can keep tabs on your teen. During our family trip, courtesy of Chevrolet to Glenwood Springs, Denver, we learned firsthand about some of these features.
Parents in newer Chevrolet cars can set teen driving controls like:
- Stereo is mute until driver and front seat passenger buckle up
- Set a maximum speed the car can accelerate to
- Set a max volume on the stereo
- Set audible and visual warnings when a preselected speed is hit
Parents can also get reports on a teen’s maximum speed, the number of over speed warnings, collision avoidance braking events, distance driven, wide open throttle, and even accidents.
We are fortunate that there are so many resources available to help our kids learn details about driving as well as have the ability to keep watch over them as they continue to gain their independence.
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