German word order is not free — it is governed by one dominant rule and one exception. THE RULE: in a main clause the conjugated verb is the SECOND element. Not the second word — the second element. Anything can occupy the first slot (subject, time, place), and whatever you put there, the verb still follows it immediately. THE EXCEPTION: in a subordinate clause the conjugated verb goes to the very END. Almost every word-order mistake at A1 and A2 is one of these two rules being broken.
Persian puts the verb at the end of almost every sentence — «من امروز آلمانی یاد میگیرم». German does the opposite in main clauses and only matches Persian in subordinate clauses. That is why «Ich heute Deutsch lerne» feels natural to you and sounds badly wrong to a German. Train the main-clause reflex first: after the first element, the verb comes immediately.