In middle school, I was terrible at math. I wouldn't pay attention in class, and was failing all the tests. When my dad found out, he very calmly asked me to bring him my math book.
He opened it up, and asked me to do a few problems from it, so he could determine what I already knew. Then, he told me: we're going to start from the beginning. Don't worry about what you're currently doing in class, we'll catch up.
First, he explained simplification of expressions. He demonstrated one problem, and went over how to methodically solve it. Then, he gave me a problem. At first, I'd try to skip steps and solve it quickly, but he corrected me, telling me to keep it simple, and solve it the same way each time. For the next two weeks, after school every day, he'd give me expression simplification problems.
Next, he taught me about solving equations: put all terms on one side, simplify the expression on that side, and then solve. Again, he insisted I follow the same steps each time, and to not do too much in one step. It took quicker to get the hang of it than it did for expressions.
Then, he told me, we're done, you're on your own. I was surprised, and asked him if he would show me the next thing in the book. He told me, no, you know enough, now you can do it on your own. And, I was surprised to find out I could. From then on, math became so easy, thanks to my dad.
There are many things if life that become easy when one takes their time to understand the foundations.
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