Although Photoshop Elements is the "easy" version of Photoshop, it is still far from intuitive. While this may seem like a bad thing it is actually what makes it a great program. When programs get too intuitive, they begin to think for you and limit options. Photoshop and Photoshop Elements do neither.
The newer versions of Photoshop are much better about guiding you to certain areas and offering better tutorials, but the best way to learn is still to just to dive in and get your hands dirty (too many idioms?).
I think there are three ways to approach Adobe Photoshop or Photoshop Elements. The best way depends on how you learn.
1. By the tool types – My favorite way to teach someone to use Photoshop is to group the tools into categories (selection, painting, and artistic/creative). Learn how each tool works and then get creative on how you combine their uses on a project.
2. By the project – This is more of a total immersion technique. Come up with a project that may seem impossible and take it head on. It could be restoring a photo, colorizing a black and white photo, creating a collage, etc. The idea here is that anything is possible with Photoshop and it is up to you to figure out how to do it. This technique requires that you read the tutorials, research methods on the Internet and ask people to help, but it works well if you have the patience.
The key here is that the project must be something you care about. It can't be something given to you by a teacher or friend.
3. Sandbox method – The Sandbox method is when you just jump in and work on meaningless projects with full confidence. You don't care if you mess anything up because you just want to learn what the different tools and settings do.
Let go of any fears you have of messing something up, pick a tool or menu and play with the settings and features. Open a picture and destroy it or enhance it beyond recognition.
No matter what method you choose, keep in mind that there is no wrong way to use Photoshop. I can show someone five or ten ways to remove a background or turn a photo to black and white, but as long as I get the desired result, it really doesn't matter how I got there.
