A good instructor will encourage questions. If you can, try to draw out the instructor with personal experiences to illustrate the items she/he is trying to convey. Get others in the class who have probably had some flight experience to share their personal observations and discuss them as a group. It becomes so much more fun and digestable when you can relate to it on a personal level.
It may also help to connect with other pilots and/or instructors online. For most of us, flying is a passion. I myself love to share with others and do it gladly for free because the love of flight is contagious. I do hope your flight instructor makes his passion for flight contagious. I know you will feel the same once you get past the overwhelmed feelings. The real trick is learning to relax. Once you are relaxed, your instructor will endorse your solo, and it is all "uphill" thereafter.
Remember that getting the private pilot license is only a start. Remember when you first got your drivers license? You really didn't become a truly safe driver for years. Getting your pilot license is somewhat similar. You are getting just enough to survive. Being a pilot is a never ending learning process that you will refine forever. The learning is never ending in developing precision and keeping up with changes that are never ending in regulation and knowledge. I have been a pilot for almost 42 years and I never stop learning. It is wonderful :)
I love lighting the fire under my students at any age. I had an 86 year old man go thru my ground school and recently got his pilots license. Sharp as a tack and a good pilot - I fly with him weekly.
Hang in there, folks -- you CAN do this!
(contributed in part by Steve Reisser's Ground School, USA)