Learning the open notes on the guitar is the first step in learning where notes are found on your guitar, but also how those notes relate to printed music as well. Open notes are the strings of your guitar played without pressing your fingers down on the neck of the guitar. The strings on a guitar are numbered one through six, with one being the thinnest string and six being the thickest. Beginning with string one, the notes are E-B-G-D-A-E.
To understand the notes on the guitar, you need to know the notes in the chromatic scale. Sharp notes are designated with a "#." The notes in the scale are C-C#-D-D#-E-F-F#-G-G#-A-A#-B and then you come to C again, sounding an octave higher than the one you started with. The sharp notes can also be called flat if you move from the note after them down to the note. Notice there are no sharps or flats between E, F, B and C. Remember this as you look for the notes on your guitar.
Fretted notes on a guitar are the notes played when you place your finger on the neck of the guitar, just behind one of the frets. The frets on the guitar are the thin metal bars across the neck. The notes on the neck of the guitar follow the chromatic scale, regardless of where you begin. If you start on the first string (E) and play the first fret next, you come to an F. The fret after the F is an F#, then a G, all the way up to the 12th fret, which will be the same note as your open string, just an octave higher.
The music staff is where music notes are written for instruments. It's typically called sheet music. The staff consists of five lines and four spaces, each representing a note in music. Notes that go higher than the music staff are added with short lines called ledger lines. Notes below the staff are added the same way. The spaces on the staff represent the notes F-A-C-E, easy to remember because of the word "face." The lines are E-G-B-D-F. Remember them with the phrase "Every good boy does fine." The lowest note of the guitar is written three ledger lines and a space below the standard staff. The A string is written on the second ledger line below the staff. The D string is written on the space below the first line of the standard staff. Other notes on the guitar can be written in several locations, so it's best to keep a note chart handy until you become familiar with your guitar.