Learner's permit (drivers ed)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Some FCPS schools offer permit testing AT school now instead of the DMV. Pretty sure Oakton and Westfield did last year.

Some schools offer it for the in-school class, but not the online class. It’s confusing. I was confused myself because my older DS took the permit test at school during in-school PE, but my younger kids (who both took online PE) had to go to the DMV.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can get the learners permit at any time, once they are old enough. You do not need the PE drivers ed to get a Learners Permit.

That does not answer OPs question. His kid is about to finish pe drivers ed. I think this is their last week of class. The learners permit exam was completed last week. What is their next step?

I’m confused then. My kids did not take a learners permit exam as part of their PE drivers Ed. They took it at the DMV. When was this changed?

Last week was not the learners permit exam - it was the final exam for the driver’s ed section of online PE. OP’s child still needs to take the learner’s permit exam at the DMV.

Then why did the pp say. “The learners permit exam was completed last week.”

The OP misunderstood what test was last week — it was the final exam for the driver’s ed portion of the class, not the permit test — although, it was god practice for the permit test.

Yes op here thanks. Got it I can just go to DMV for the learners permit the classes and exam in the end help prepare for the DMV learners permit exam in addition to providing the pink slip necessary for the 16yo and 3m permit.

[Anonymous]

Do a lot of people wait til after taking drivers ed at school to get the learners permit? My son is eligible for a learners permit this summer (before sophomore year) and I don't know when he'll take drivers ed yet. We already tried to get the learners permit, but he failed the sign test so we have to go back. And they have to wait 15 days!! He studied and did practice tests, but just got one sign question that was tricky - I would have missed it too. They have to get 10/10 on that portion. Probably they go over the tricks in drivers ed.

If we waited til after drivers ed and then had to hold the permit for 9 months he'd probably be almost 17 by the time he actually got his license. I think we'll try the test once more and then decide.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do a lot of people wait til after taking drivers ed at school to get the learners permit? My son is eligible for a learners permit this summer (before sophomore year) and I don't know when he'll take drivers ed yet. We already tried to get the learners permit, but he failed the sign test so we have to go back. And they have to wait 15 days!! He studied and did practice tests, but just got one sign question that was tricky - I would have missed it too. They have to get 10/10 on that portion. Probably they go over the tricks in drivers ed.

If we waited til after drivers ed and then had to hold the permit for 9 months he'd probably be almost 17 by the time he actually got his license. I think we'll try the test once more and then decide.

If you want him to have it, then go again. But, make him study more. Don't forget the part about which way to turn the tires when parking on a hill. (Both my kids had that question.)

Both my kids passed the first time. I threatened my son that he better pass because I was not going to come to the DMV again any time soon. (This was before you could make appointments.) You might try that threat.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some FCPS schools offer permit testing AT school now instead of the DMV. Pretty sure Oakton and Westfield did last year.

I'm confused I thought that was the whole purpose of the drives ed with fcps to bypass the DMV exam but apparently my kid has to do another exam at the DMV. Can someone clarify?

When my kids got their license, they needed:
The PE Driver ‘s Ed class
For DH or I to go with them to watch PSAs about driving. Under the influence - they show this in the venting at their HS several times a year
To take at test at DMV to get their Learner’s Permit- a picture is taken for the permit and will also be used for their drivers license
45 hours of driving with 15 at night
The last thing is “Behind the Wheel” - which is 7 or 8 days in a row of about two hours of driving with an instructor and other student. At the end of this, the instructor passes them (or not) and gives them a temporary paper Driver’s License.

The step below stopped during Covid and I don’t know if they have started it up again.

90 days or so after that they got a postcard telling them the day and time they needed to show up at the courthouse with a parent to get their driver’s license- after about a 45 minute talk about not driving under the influence or after curfew. They gave the license to the parent and said it was up to them to give it to the child.


The DMV has a great pdf of 30 minute driving lessons for the whole 45 hours - it was a great starting place - we ended up doing things at a slightly different pace, but it was a good list of the skill needed as they progressed. We also had our kids do way more than the minimum 45 hours and made sure they had some winter driving experience too.

My DC got their license last year, and Fairfax still had not reinstated the courthouse license pickup - it came in the mail.

This is close but really depends on the age of your kid.

My 2nd kid is finishing HPE 10 this week.

Both my kids got their permits as soon as they turned 15 and 6 months - at the DMV, took a test -- got permit months before they even started HPE10.

Test you take in HPE10 is to pass the classroom part of Driver's Ed -- you get a pink slip which is required to take behind the wheel.

As pink slips won't be handed out until after school starts next month, I called FCPS ACE (where kid is registered to take behind the wheel before school starts) and they said as long as he has proof that he took the class and passed the test with an 85, he can start behind the wheel.

Behind the wheel will finish before their 16th birthday, as it did for my previous kid. The slip they get after behind the wheel allows them to get their license at 16 and 3 months (or, when they have had their permit for 9 months - if they didn't get their permit right at 15 and 6 months - they will have to wait longer to get their license).

When you apply at the DMV for the license, it's techincally then a provisional license, it's a piece of paper, and within a month or so the hard copy comes in the mail. Still provisional for I think 6 months.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can get the learners permit at any time, once they are old enough. You do not need the PE drivers ed to get a Learners Permit.

That does not answer OPs question. His kid is about to finish pe drivers ed. I think this is their last week of class. The learners permit exam was completed last week. What is their next step?

I’m confused then. My kids did not take a learners permit exam as part of their PE drivers Ed. They took it at the DMV. When was this changed?

Last week was not the learners permit exam - it was the final exam for the driver’s ed section of online PE. OP’s child still needs to take the learner’s permit exam at the DMV.

Then why did the pp say. “The learners permit exam was completed last week.”

The OP misunderstood what test was last week — it was the final exam for the driver’s ed portion of the class, not the permit test — although, it was god practice for the permit test.

Yes op here thanks. Got it I can just go to DMV for the learners permit the classes and exam in the end help prepare for the DMV learners permit exam in addition to providing the pink slip necessary for the 16yo and 3m permit.

Correct. You child get get his/her permit now by taking the permit test at the DMV. When they go for their license in 9 months, they will need to show the Behind the Wheel person the pink slip, which shows they completed Driver’s Ed (which was what the test they took last week was for).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some FCPS schools offer permit testing AT school now instead of the DMV. Pretty sure Oakton and Westfield did last year.

I'm confused I thought that was the whole purpose of the drives ed with fcps to bypass the DMV exam but apparently my kid has to do another exam at the DMV. Can someone clarify?

When my kids got their license, they needed:
The PE Driver ‘s Ed class
For DH or I to go with them to watch PSAs about driving. Under the influence - they show this in the venting at their HS several times a year
To take at test at DMV to get their Learner’s Permit- a picture is taken for the permit and will also be used for their drivers license
45 hours of driving with 15 at night
The last thing is “Behind the Wheel” - which is 7 or 8 days in a row of about two hours of driving with an instructor and other student. At the end of this, the instructor passes them (or not) and gives them a temporary paper Driver’s License.

The step below stopped during Covid and I don’t know if they have started it up again.

90 days or so after that they got a postcard telling them the day and time they needed to show up at the courthouse with a parent to get their driver’s license- after about a 45 minute talk about not driving under the influence or after curfew. They gave the license to the parent and said it was up to them to give it to the child.


The DMV has a great pdf of 30 minute driving lessons for the whole 45 hours - it was a great starting place - we ended up doing things at a slightly different pace, but it was a good list of the skill needed as they progressed. We also had our kids do way more than the minimum 45 hours and made sure they had some winter driving experience too.

My DC got their license last year, and Fairfax still had not reinstated the courthouse license pickup - it came in the mail.

This is close but really depends on the age of your kid.

My 2nd kid is finishing HPE 10 this week.

Both my kids got their permits as soon as they turned 15 and 6 months - at the DMV, took a test -- got permit months before they even started HPE10.

Test you take in HPE10 is to pass the classroom part of Driver's Ed -- you get a pink slip which is required to take behind the wheel.

As pink slips won't be handed out until after school starts next month, I called FCPS ACE (where kid is registered to take behind the wheel before school starts) and they said as long as he has proof that he took the class and passed the test with an 85, he can start behind the wheel.

Behind the wheel will finish before their 16th birthday, as it did for my previous kid. The slip they get after behind the wheel allows them to get their license at 16 and 3 months (or, when they have had their permit for 9 months - if they didn't get their permit right at 15 and 6 months - they will have to wait longer to get their license).

When you apply at the DMV for the license, it's techincally then a provisional license, it's a piece of paper, and within a month or so the hard copy comes in the mail. Still provisional for I think 6 months.

my kid obtained turned 15.5 and has the learner's permit (and will receive the pink slip soon). when should I schedule the behind the wheels with a driving school? should it be scheduled right before 16.3? or right after?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some FCPS schools offer permit testing AT school now instead of the DMV. Pretty sure Oakton and Westfield did last year.

I'm confused I thought that was the whole purpose of the drives ed with fcps to bypass the DMV exam but apparently my kid has to do another exam at the DMV. Can someone clarify?

When my kids got their license, they needed:
The PE Driver ‘s Ed class
For DH or I to go with them to watch PSAs about driving. Under the influence - they show this in the venting at their HS several times a year
To take at test at DMV to get their Learner’s Permit- a picture is taken for the permit and will also be used for their drivers license
45 hours of driving with 15 at night
The last thing is “Behind the Wheel” - which is 7 or 8 days in a row of about two hours of driving with an instructor and other student. At the end of this, the instructor passes them (or not) and gives them a temporary paper Driver’s License.

The step below stopped during Covid and I don’t know if they have started it up again.

90 days or so after that they got a postcard telling them the day and time they needed to show up at the courthouse with a parent to get their driver’s license- after about a 45 minute talk about not driving under the influence or after curfew. They gave the license to the parent and said it was up to them to give it to the child.


The DMV has a great pdf of 30 minute driving lessons for the whole 45 hours - it was a great starting place - we ended up doing things at a slightly different pace, but it was a good list of the skill needed as they progressed. We also had our kids do way more than the minimum 45 hours and made sure they had some winter driving experience too.

My DC got their license last year, and Fairfax still had not reinstated the courthouse license pickup - it came in the mail.

This is close but really depends on the age of your kid.

My 2nd kid is finishing HPE 10 this week.

Both my kids got their permits as soon as they turned 15 and 6 months - at the DMV, took a test -- got permit months before they even started HPE10.

Test you take in HPE10 is to pass the classroom part of Driver's Ed -- you get a pink slip which is required to take behind the wheel.

As pink slips won't be handed out until after school starts next month, I called FCPS ACE (where kid is registered to take behind the wheel before school starts) and they said as long as he has proof that he took the class and passed the test with an 85, he can start behind the wheel.

Behind the wheel will finish before their 16th birthday, as it did for my previous kid. The slip they get after behind the wheel allows them to get their license at 16 and 3 months (or, when they have had their permit for 9 months - if they didn't get their permit right at 15 and 6 months - they will have to wait longer to get their license).

When you apply at the DMV for the license, it's techincally then a provisional license, it's a piece of paper, and within a month or so the hard copy comes in the mail. Still provisional for I think 6 months.

my kid obtained turned 15.5 and has the learner's permit (and will receive the pink slip soon). when should I schedule the behind the wheels with a driving school? should it be scheduled right before 16.3? or right after?

You can sign your kid up for Behind the Wheel before 16.3 so that they can get their actual license when they turn 16.3. It's best to make sure to have the 30-45hrs or driving experience before Behind the Wheel - don't expect Behind the Wheel to give them the experience to learn to drive to get the license. You can also do Behind the Wheel at any certified driving school and dont have to sign up for one of the ones that take place at an FCPS school. My kid did Behind the Wheel via a separate one that we could schedule based on personal schedules over the course of a few weeks vs every single day and have to drop off and pick up somewhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some FCPS schools offer permit testing AT school now instead of the DMV. Pretty sure Oakton and Westfield did last year.

I'm confused I thought that was the whole purpose of the drives ed with fcps to bypass the DMV exam but apparently my kid has to do another exam at the DMV. Can someone clarify?

When my kids got their license, they needed:
The PE Driver ‘s Ed class
For DH or I to go with them to watch PSAs about driving. Under the influence - they show this in the venting at their HS several times a year
To take at test at DMV to get their Learner’s Permit- a picture is taken for the permit and will also be used for their drivers license
45 hours of driving with 15 at night
The last thing is “Behind the Wheel” - which is 7 or 8 days in a row of about two hours of driving with an instructor and other student. At the end of this, the instructor passes them (or not) and gives them a temporary paper Driver’s License.

The step below stopped during Covid and I don’t know if they have started it up again.

90 days or so after that they got a postcard telling them the day and time they needed to show up at the courthouse with a parent to get their driver’s license- after about a 45 minute talk about not driving under the influence or after curfew. They gave the license to the parent and said it was up to them to give it to the child.


The DMV has a great pdf of 30 minute driving lessons for the whole 45 hours - it was a great starting place - we ended up doing things at a slightly different pace, but it was a good list of the skill needed as they progressed. We also had our kids do way more than the minimum 45 hours and made sure they had some winter driving experience too.

My DC got their license last year, and Fairfax still had not reinstated the courthouse license pickup - it came in the mail.

This is close but really depends on the age of your kid.

My 2nd kid is finishing HPE 10 this week.

Both my kids got their permits as soon as they turned 15 and 6 months - at the DMV, took a test -- got permit months before they even started HPE10.

Test you take in HPE10 is to pass the classroom part of Driver's Ed -- you get a pink slip which is required to take behind the wheel.

As pink slips won't be handed out until after school starts next month, I called FCPS ACE (where kid is registered to take behind the wheel before school starts) and they said as long as he has proof that he took the class and passed the test with an 85, he can start behind the wheel.

Behind the wheel will finish before their 16th birthday, as it did for my previous kid. The slip they get after behind the wheel allows them to get their license at 16 and 3 months (or, when they have had their permit for 9 months - if they didn't get their permit right at 15 and 6 months - they will have to wait longer to get their license).

When you apply at the DMV for the license, it's techincally then a provisional license, it's a piece of paper, and within a month or so the hard copy comes in the mail. Still provisional for I think 6 months.

my kid obtained turned 15.5 and has the learner's permit (and will receive the pink slip soon). when should I schedule the behind the wheels with a driving school? should it be scheduled right before 16.3? or right after?

It depends on how well they have learned how to drive. Some people need a bit more time than the minimum the law allows. IME, 45 hours is not enough for most teenagers.