Mathematical Illusion

I hear some of my friends struggling with their children's math homework,  I have not done so with Benjamin, but perhaps I should.  One of his recent scores was pretty low.  I will have to get in there soon, try to help, and most importantly, try not to make it worse.  Because I'll tell you a secret.

I don't like math.

I'm not really very good at it.


Whhhaaaat, you say.  But, Tom, aren't you like a CPA?

Which does involve numbers and logic, yes, but not necessarily higher level math skills.

It's true, I have a fascination with numbers and statistics.  I'm provably one of the few who is as fascinated by the numbers my blog produces as I am with  many other aspects of it.

But you start talking about algebra, or geometry, or God forbid, Calculus, and I fall apart.

I got a D in Regular Algebra in high school.

I got an F (that's right - the big flunkarooni) in Calculus in college.  I chose accounting in part because  I couldn't pass the math to be a computer engineer.

I remember my frustration over math homework,  They would assign you something, and I would struggle all night to complete it.  Well, sometimes I would give up fairly quickly, to be honest.  I mean, there were shows to watch, books to read, stories to write!  Okay, most of the time I gave up fairly quickly.

The next day in class the teacher would explain how to do last night's homework.  It would sink in.  Hey, I can do that!  Give it to me again.  No such luck.  She would assign something completely different, another something I had no comprehension as to how to do.

My Dad tried to help.  And he just wasn't another guy, another lost parent trying to remember themselves what to do.  My parent was one of the best math teachers in the state.  Even as Principal, he tried to teach one math class a day.  And his specialty was not the gifted or bright, it was with low achievers.  He got kids achieving at levels they never dreamed they could.  He was truly awesome.

And it didn't help me one whit.  He was patient, but I didn't get it, and I would become very frustrated.  Maybe because I was his son and our relationship was different, I just didn't learn even from one of the very best I could learn from.

And so when Benjamin needs help with math, I think....my Dad couldn't help me, so how can I help him?

But he's my boy.  And I'm going to try.