if your first starting minecraft then a few notes to take when you get into your new world.
-This game has acheivements, when you complete one you'll see it in the top right corner.
-You can pause using both E and Esc keys providing different pause menus. E produces your inventory and a minor crafting chart. Esc. produces a 'save and quit' option, the acheivments page and your settings.
-video speed changes depending on how far you set your sight and how well you make your graphics.

Once you start take a look at your environment. There are 4 different areas in minecraft that you can spawn in, desert, forest, mountain, and snowland. Now look in your inventory at the little square of spaces when you click E. those four squares next to your character can be used to craft things. find a tree. when you do click and hold so that your character will punches until it will break. when it breaks a block of wood will come out which you can use to craft things. putting wood and other combination of items in the crafter will allow to creat more things. you can also break dirt, sand, stone, and basically everything in the game to make a house smile .

When you do have a block of wood put it in your little square in your inventory. That will create four pieces of wooden blocks. place one square of each block in the crafter (right click to put only one down). That should make a crafting table. The crafting table will become the basis of all crafting because it has 9 blocks instead of 4, thus multiplying the possible creations exponentionally.

Now focus on making a shelter before the night falls. Night is never a good sign and a house is always handy.