Hey,
We are in the same situation. I Started with the Elevator. By far the easiest thing to do. Just start high and chop the power all the way donw. Switch on high rates and feed in up elevator as the plane begins to slow. As you get close to full up add in 2 or three clicks of power and just let the plane sink. Pretty cool. Practice steering it around with the rudder. When you start getting low keep the elevator at full but flick the low rate swithch while punching the throttle.
From here you can progress to Harriers and hovering. That's where I am now...
RickP