A good reference FAQ for learning the C language is at http://www.faqs.org/faqs/C-faq/learn/.
In particular, the lecture notes at http://www.eskimo.com/~scs/cclass/cclass.html provide a good introductory tutorial.
Best practices would probably include learning CeeUnitTesting as soon possible.
See also IwannaLearnCeePlusPlus and CeePlusPlusRoadMap -- they points to lots of tools that work just fine for plain C.