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http://augury24.blogspot.com/2010/07/sc2-basics.html
Here's my attempt at a guide for the basics of Starcraft 2.
I wanted to focus around the idea that players should focus less on specifics and more on the larger picture. I know so many people that have gotten hooked on the eSports scene and it's really hurt the rate of their progression.
There's so many things you need to master before you can start getting into the more complex theories revolving around Sc2. The article didn't come off nearly as well as I would have hoped, but I believe it's still a good basis for beginners.
I've introduced this method to a few of my friends when they first got into the Sc2 Beta and the results were pretty good. With no prior RTS experience, they ended up in Diamond by the end of the Beta. Keeping in mind that they focused 100% on mechanical game play.
This might be completely useless, but it's my attempt at conveying hopefully useful information to the community.
Thanks 
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I'm also writing an extremely comprehensive guide for SC2 newbies. While I agree with most of your points, I do have some hesitations about one part.
You say that your game play should be highly mechanically focused - which I completely agree with. But then you say that you should play games vs. people and get to 200/200 food before attacking, which is basically a 100% mechanics approached to game play.
I find that an approach like that gets very mentally exhausting simply because you'll lose so many games trying to reach that 200/200 food mark. Defending against any possible attack is much more difficult than going on the offensive and keeping your opponent's unit count low. Because of that, you might end up losing to a whole lot of things - two base battlecruisers, mass cloaked banshees, mass carriers, and a whole bunch of other things that newbies like to pull off at the low level.
Most noobs are playing with the end goal of winning, not to practice and get better while getting stomped. I think that at some point, a guide written for the general newbie has to keep the "fun factor" in mind. Perhaps an 80% 20% split between mechanics and strategy.
Although really, I'm still not sure.
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I did state at the beginning of the guide that the approach wasn't going to be fun, but yeah I do agree, it would be hard for most players to stick to those rules.
I really think it's crucial to keep players away from focusing too much on builds. It's important to develop the skills that will help you improve.
Mastering specific builds might get you to Rank C quickly, but then you'll have a hard time advancing further.
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I really agree on the fundamentals of your guide, but not on the execution you describe. You are absolutely 100% right on the fact that a new player should focus on getting their macro and mechanics down. But I don't really like the idea that you should when you are learning to play you should just macro to 200/200 then attack. It encourages turtling and really creates a bad style of play for the new player.
What I would suggest (And infact used to teach my friend who's 100% new to SC). Make them understand the same focus on a) Making works, b) Not getting supply blocked, c) Constantly making units, d) Keeping money low. (i.e. mechanics and macro) but at the same time I give them a stable, solid build that works against most other builds and has a nice timing attack to it. (In this case it was a 3 gate robo into colossus.) This gives the new player times to throw down unit producing structures to keep their money low, rather than figuring this out for themselves. It also gives them an adaptable build that doesn't have one glaring weakness, and gives them a time to attack (This case when you have 2 colossus and thermal lance) which has a decent chance of wining/doing damage.
Getting them to a stage to win is important too, as well as forming good strategic habits and gamesense. Sure you can get their mechanics down pat 100%, then teach them strats and aggressiveness, but with 95% of players you run the risk of leading them into bad habits or just having them up and quit after they were beaten for the 50th time by a better 200/200 composition. I've beate plenty of players who do a similar thing to what you describe, even an indentical thing and they do it very well. Imo anything that is designed for new players has to include fun (and winning) in it at some point.
I agree with the part about mastering a build getting you to C quickly, but little further, but if you combine a basic build with the good fundamentals, you end up with not only arguably a slightly better player, but a player who is enjoying the game more too.
Just my 2C, and this has ended up sounding a little more critical than I intended. Don't take this the wrong way, I really like what you are doing, and agree with the concept, just not the specifics 
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The previous poster outlined essentially the same method I use to train my newbie friends (I just didn't feel like typing the whole thing out).
That said, to each teacher his own method.
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I agree with you 100%, I would have liked to have gotten into more specifics and developed a game plan for each race; however, I honestly just didn't put in the amount of time that I should have.
I do think it's crucial to be very vague in the actual build order part of the plan, and I'd like it to be more of a get to 200/200 with a better unit composition. The reason I don't like giving out a specific plan and advocated the low tech units is to keep players from thinking ahead. I don't want them to start thinking well if I get these colossus faster or if I add this then I will win more often.
I wanted them to focus on the basics as much as possible. I do agree that I should have gone into more detail and presented a better strategy for each match-up that still focused on basic units. The only thing that I disagree with is that they can't win with this strategy.
It would be very easy to advance to at least platinum following the 200/200 rule set.
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Ah ok, fair enough.
Winning with this will depend more on their opposition though. Granted they will probably win plenty against copper/silver level players, but as soon as you get people who know somewhat which units to build to combat their composition, then they are in trouble. Hit plat and people should know to expand and out macro a turtling player (Im only plat, and I have smashed plenty of players who played exactly like this.)
For instance, when the Terran player sits on 1/2 Base and makes only MmM, most plat players will have the foresight to (e.g. as another Terran) expand to 3+ other bases, and camp their front door with a metric shitton of Tanks, thors, a few vikings and Hellions. Given that they will effectively be 1A moving a lower tech, bio based army into a killzone of higher tech units, they will get annihilated. Even if they somehow manage a draw, well you have the bases and production facilities to out macro them and THEN destroy them. You'll be able to beat silver/copper players, perhaps even Gold level with this kind of play, but please don't say platinum, the time I lose to a turtle who waits for 200/200 will be a sad day.
I still think that giving them a basic BO to use will result in better play (or roughly equal) while letting them win more and giving them the basis for skills that you will need to be teaching them from scratch later anyway.
I don't want them to start thinking well if I get these colossus faster or if I add this then I will win more often.
Hmm, see I think this sort of mindset would work if, say, they are at like Gosu Coaching with a 1 on 1 trainer who then guides them through everything, but not on an internet guide. Given that most of these players aren't looking to become the next Bisu or Flash, I think that letting them work out strategies is a good move. For them to say that 'If I get x faster I would won' can be good, as it pushes higher level strategic thinking.
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EPT
