Look at starmap and make sure the time you're looking is same as time on map. Look at the brightness of each star in the group. Go celebrate now by making your first starnotes entry. Many objects described will be visible at sunset. Only the brightest objects will show at first making identification easier.
Planets are hard to miss They look like very bright stars.
With just the little amount of information I have given you, your knowledge of the night sky will snowball very quickly. With as little a commitment as a half hour a night two or three nights a week. We will start with the Big Dipper.