hello

learose said:

... thanks for any pointers/refresher course u can give me ...

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We do not provide courses at this web site, but here are some pointers.

(1) Have your daughter communicate with us directly.

(2) Have your daughter read the post titled "Read Before Posting". It outlines her responsibilities for seeking assistance at this web site.

(3) Have your daughter show us whatever work that she is able to accomplish on these exercises; if she cannot do anything at all, then have her explain to us the reason why. We need to see some initiative on her part.

(4) Here is a link for steps on solving simple equations with one variable: READ ALL THREE PAGES HERE.

Once your daughter reads the lessons at the link above, then she will be in a position to ask specific questions when she gets stuck. Specific questions from your daughter allow us to understand exactly what type of help that she needs.

Cheers,

~ Mark

PS: I certainly hope that you are not teaching your daughter to spell the word "you" as "u" and the word "I" as "i". This type of sloppy English really sets a bad example for young people. This web site is not a chat room, and I claim that the educated people here do not appreciate reading text-speak.

learose said:

... I'm sorry that I offended you. Who told you that I am offended?

... I didn't know that I had to be perfect. Who told you that you need to be perfect?

... [My daughter] is a blind child ... Her books are all in [braille] ... Clearly, your daughter attends a school for special-need students or a school with special-need accommodations.

Is your daughter able to express why she cannot follow the instructions that she receives at school? I need more information about this entire situation before I can begin to understand exactly what is taking place. Do you read braille? Where did these equations come from? Does the school send home math exercises in printed material, and then you are expected to explain to your daughter what the symbols look like, how the numbers are arranged, the relationships between expressions, and so forth?

I must state that I'm somewhat surprised that the mother of a blind child could be so thin-skinned. Do you, in general, try to keep your daughter's blindness a secret in public forums? I believe that parents of blind children would, in general, always state up-front that their child has a disability in order to receive the maximum amount of support and services.

Regardless, I now understand that you are not attempting to get help for your daughter directly, but, rather, you want us to help you to learn algebra so that you may in turn teach it to your daughter using whatever methods are appropriate for a blind student.

Why did you not simply say so? (This is a rhetorical question.)

We do not, in general, provide lessons at this site.

Did you read the three pages of lessons at the link that I provided?

Since you are the actual student here, then I would like to know where to begin with you.

Please, read the information at that link, if you have not already done so.

The process of solving these equations is very straightforward; below, I will complete the first exercise that you posted. See if you can understand the steps in conjunction with the information on those three pages of lessons.

... So, if anyone else that has compassion and not some put down is able to help me ... Please, give me a break, lady. Firstly, this math help has nothing to do with compassion. Secondly, even if it did, it is you who kept your daughter's blindness a secret in the first place. Therefore, you have no position whatsoever to cast judgment on the level of my compassion.

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2 - 2x + 3x = 2

The terms -2x and 3x are called "like" terms because both of these terms contain the variable x. (The remaining two terms in this equation are both constants; constants are also considered "like" terms, with respect to each other, because they are all terms that do not contain the variable x.)

"Like" terms may be combined.

If you have three "x's", and you take two away, then you are left with one "x". In other words, combining the terms -2x and 3x yields x. (Note that we do not write 1x; when we see x by itself, it is understood that there is only one x.)

After combining -2x and 3x, we get an equivalent equation.

2 + x = 2

Now ask yourself: "What number do I need to add to 2 in order to end up with 2?" Clearly, we need to add 0 to 2 in order to end up with 2. If we add any other number, then there is no way the answer could be 2. It is clear that x = 0.

However, if you do not see this, then you could continue with one last algebraic step to solve for x.

Since the goal in solving equations that contain x is to get the x all by itself on one side of the equal sign, then we recognize that we need to subtract the 2 on the left-hand side. The most important rule to remember in algebra is that any operation done to one side of an equation must always be done to the other side, as well.

In other words, we must subtract 2 from both sides of the equation.

2 - 2 + x = 2 - 2

Now, it's simple arithmetic. Two minus two equals zero.

x = 0

That is the solution.

Please feel free to come back, after reading the lessons on the Internet, if you have any specific questions about the remaining exercises. Please show your work.

If your daughter is struggling, then I strongly suggest that you arrange a parent-teacher conference because I doubt there are many individuals in this forum with experience teaching math to blind students.

Cheers,

~ Mark