When converting from 'normal' to 'reference' I propose you keep the same value.

Instead of

my $x  = $array[0];
my $y = $aref->1;

change the example to

my $x = $array[0];
my $x = $aref->[0];

Otherwise someone who is totally new to references might get the impression you also need to increase the array index by one...

P.S.: Maybe you should also explain the meaning of 'aref' / 'href'.