You first want to leave the 6y alone so you have to get rid of the 12. The simplest way to do it is to subtract 12 from each side. It should now be -6y=12. It is 12 because 24-12. You now wish to leave the y alone so you have to divide everything by -6 (-6y/-6=12/-6) Your answer should now be -2. Remember that because the 6 and the 12 have different symbols you have to make it a negative!