The ability to drive a car is a necessary skill for most people in industrialized countries. As a result, it has become a rite of passage into adulthood.
I’ve taught three children how to drive and every one of them experienced not only changing abilities but expanded knowledge. Shortly before they started driving they showed little awareness of the network of roads and locations around our home, even when traveling on familiar routes to familiar places. I would ask them what direction we were heading or where I should turn, and they usually had no idea.
They were just along for the ride. Since they relied on someone else to drive, they didn’t waste mental capacity on such things.
But when they got behind the steering wheel that changed quickly. Suddenly, the maps inside their heads expanded to include virtually the entire metro area and surrounding counties. Learning to drive gave them a new dominion. They grew in their knowledge to accommodate their new powers for a larger realm. It was a profound transformation. When they took on adult responsibilities they transitioned to adult thinking.
So, let’s think about how a child develops when he learns how to drive.
