This is the 8th exercise in the Core Skills Picking section.

In the previous exercise we were using just downstrokes to pick each note. Now we shall apply basic "alternate picking" to the same notes. This simply means playing each successive note with down / up / down / up strokes consistently.

It is important that you practice simple exercises like this because you are actually learning some important fundamental guitar techniques. It's important to get them right from the start. Here we are not just working on playing 4 notes in a repeating pattern, but more importantly, we are developing your alternate picking. It is important to synchronise each pick stroke along with your other fingers on the fretboard as they move from note to note. Do it right, and you will get a consistent pace and clean notes each time.

Here we are picking one-note-per-stroke. This is very common on guitar. With 'alternate picking', the pick-stroke must always follow the down / up / down / up / down / up pattern, no matter what note is coming next. Later when you start to work at fast solos this method of alternate picking becomes very important for speed and economy of movement. So remember to get it right at this early stage!

As always, loop the ActionTab and keep practicing until you get a consistent flow.