Multi-tasking

When I was training to become a Driving Instructor, my trainer suggested that, whenever I was driving, I should give a commentary on my drive. For example, if I were approaching a pedestrian crossing, the commentary would go something like:
“Pedestrian crossing up ahead. Checking mirrors to confirm the situation behind me….. That taxi is a bit close, so braking gently…….Scanning crossing for pedestrians…. Man walking up to crossing, pressing button….. Another mirror check and braking gently to prepare in case the lights change, or the man crosses…. Changing down to 3rd gear, foot off accelerator…. Lights changing to amber… Another mirror check, it’s safe to brake… Braking progressively and pressing clutch to stop the car…. Applying handbrake…. Looking out for any other pedestrians that may be looking to cross…. Checking left and right mirrors for any cyclists or motorbikes that may pull alongside…… Lights changing, bringing clutch to biting-point, final check for last minute pedestrians, releasing handbrake and accelerating with a final check of mirrors for vehicles that may be looking to overtake” (phew!)
I couldn’t do this ‘commentary driving’, I felt stupid talking to myself (whilst sober). Well, I persevered with it and, after a while, I stopped feeling self-conscious.
You may be wondering why this is a good idea. Two reasons: Firstly, it gets you used to describing exactly what a pupil needs to do in each situation. For instance, when I am teaching a pupil Pedestrian crossings for the first time, I would be giving a very similar list of instructions to the approach described above. If you are training to become an instructor (and not just driving instructors), then you should practice this technique to get used to talking a pupil through a situation.
Secondly, it really helps focus on exactly what you should be doing and reduces the chances of missing anything.

This morning, I met my new pupil, Michaela, from Duffus (another new location for me). After asking her what driving experience she may already have (very little), we ran through the cockpit drill and controls. Duffus is a small, quiet village with roads barely long enough to get up to 3rd gear before encountering a junction. Normally, I would aim to teach moving off/stopping on a nice, long road, with minimal hazards (such as parked cars). But, because the village was so quiet, I was able to ‘push’ Michaela and teach left/right turns and T-junctions as part of ‘moving off/stopping’.
I will always, with the car switched off, explain what we are going to do, offer a demonstration (if required), then give full, detailed instruction. If that seems to be going well, then I can back off a bit on the instruction and ask questions, such as “Which mirrors do you need to check here? When would be a good time to signal? Do you need to adjust you position? How are you going to control your speed? Which gear do you think is appropriate? Where should you be looking?”. Then, if they are giving me the correct answers, I can back off even more and try to leave them to it (coming back in with instruction if it looks like they are about to miss something).
When it got to the point where I could start to leave Michaela to it, she found it helpful to talk herself through it, to give a commentary drive. Ok, it was a first lesson, so everything was done at a relatively slow speed and she had time to talk herself through it, but I hope she continues with the commentary because it clearly works for her.

Right, lunchtime’s over. Time to get back to work
Today’s dynamite disc is 'Another girl, another planet' by The Only Ones. A bit of an obvious one (for people that have known me too long), but essential listening (IMHO). http://open.spotify.com/track/0PDZ4Rgj36MxVgvoMv3sk5