When I was a new knitter, I would get SO CONFUSED when a knitting pattern said to “Knit the knits and Purl the purls”. It just didn’t make sense to me. I thought that they meant that I should knit the stitches that I had knit on the row before, and purl the stitches I had purled on the row before. So, my knitting never came out right.
But, with experience, I learned what they really meant. You should knit the stitches that LOOK like they were just knit. And you should purl the stitches that LOOK like they were just purled.
In this photo, I knit a little sample that has 3 knits, then 3 purls on the right end. You would knit the first 3 stitches, then purl the next 3 stitches, then continue knitting the knits and purling the purls.
I also made a little video. Hopefully, it will help someone.
Good luck with your knitting!