Welcome to the forum wsews!
I did my first unit for Month 1 with the striplate method and pressed the seams open. After that, I switched to paper piecing.
In this example, you can see the back of my completed unit. The square surrounds the side done with paper piecing and the circle surrounds the one done with the Striplate method.
I can easily see where the points are to join them to the center strip with either method. If you continue to do the Striplate Method, you will want to continue with open seams, but with paper piecing the seams usually go to one side. If that is an issue for you, watch the video where I show using freezer paper for the foundation. That way you have the option of having the seams pressed open if that's your preference!
[url]learn/classrooms/[/url]
You might want to try one of the smaller units using each method to see which one works best for you. Have fun and enjoy the process!