8th notes divide a bar into 8

This is how a single 8th note looks alone. This is not seen often seen in the early stages but stay with me…

This is a pair of 8th strums. These add up to 1 beat and are joined at the top- the idea is it makes it easier to read.

If we do this for every strum in a bar, we split a bar into 8 strums, hence the name ‘8th strumming.

Strumming Pattern 2 - 8th Strumming

Here, you simply play twice as many twice as fast. However, the count MUST be ’1 + 2 + 3 + 4 +’ otherwise your chords will be to the wrong count.