There was magic behind what Napier did with equations. He would take one that had some terms equal to some others and by repeated passes of al-jabr bring all the terms to the left, leaving only a zero on the right. These were what he called his ‘equations to nothing’. Why was the trick so important? It depended on what at first seems rather inconsequential: if a product of two or more factors is equal to zero, then at least one of them must be zero as well.
School classrooms can be exceedingly difficult places in which to learn mathematics well.
Teachers vary in passion and ability (as is natural); class behaviour and attitudes (and bullying) can alter the learning environment radically; learning in a large group at the same speed and with little opportunity to receive one-on-one help leads to boredom or frustration for many/most students; textbooks vary in quality and frequently lack stimulating material (because publishers restrict the size of the books); and sometimes students are negatively influenced by parents and peers who share their own bad experiences or attitudes.
Home educators, too, often feel that they lack sufficient understanding to teach their children mathematics … and the resources that they have access to can sometimes be bland, unstimulating, and even poorly explained or constructed.
My wife and I home educated our daughter and I have taught and tutored mathematics for many years. I am aware of the difficulties listed above and have often been asked by students and parents to create a website to share my understanding and resources with others. Crystal Clear Mathematics is the result.
Because this medium is not interactive (in the sense of allowing immediate interaction between you and me) I cannot provide the quality of tutition that I would like to offer you … but I hope you find the videos and the supporting files to be useful none-the-less.
This website and its associated FaceBook page and YouTube channel were all launched on Tuesday 20 November 2012.
Best teacher ever. You make math effortless.
Christopher C (on a CCM YouTube video demonstrating the Product Rule)