As a math teacher, I have taught both middle school math and high school math (Algebra, Geometry and Trigonometry). My method is to teach step by step how to solve a couple of problems and then have the student solve one with my help and then have the student solve one by him/herself.

After the problem solving method is mastered, I believe that practice makes perfect and the student is expected to solve many similar problems - some are done immediately and others are assigned as homework...