My second ever quilt class (supposed to be a rail fence lap quilt) the instructor was a high-school math teacher. She told all of us to "Find the hypotenuse of the triangle". OK, ladies, those of you who have been out of school more than 10 years, quick, what the dickens is the hypotenuse and how do you find it? Then she told all of us beginner quilters that if our seams were off by a needle width, out quilt would be ruined. (Yes, accurate piecing is imperative, but that's not how to explain it to a new quilter!)
I walked out of the class almost in tears swearing I would never quilt again. Fortunately I phoned my FIRST quilt instructor, who had given me her home phone number, and she invited me to her house to sew with her. We have been best friends now for almost 15 years, and everything I've learned is because of her! Thanks JoeAnn!
P.S. We STILL laugh about the Hypotenuse. It's become a good giggle!