Volume IV Lab Template
Every Volume IV lab has five sections in this order. Copy the block below to labs/lab-NN-slug.md to start a new lab.
| Section | Written by | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Overview | Instructor | The physical question, why the lab exists, its core concepts, and where it sits in the course |
| 2. Learning Objectives | Instructor | What a student can do afterward |
| 3. Instructions | Staff | Setup, then one sub-section per weekly part: steps, tests, and pitfalls |
| 4. Deliverables | Instructor (staff add thresholds) | The evidence each team hands in, and how it is signed off |
| 5. Reflection | Instructor | Questions that connect the measurement back to the book |
Labs and parts. A lab teaches one core set of concepts. It is made of parts, one per week. Each part is one supervised studio session with a goal and a checkpoint, the artifact staff see before the team moves on. The goal and checkpoint are set by the instructor; the steps are written by staff.
Status. Each lab carries one status: skeleton (sections 1, 2, 4, 5 written; instructions open), draft (instructions written, not yet run on the bench), or bench-verified (a staff member has run the whole lab on the reference station, and every threshold comes from that run).
Conventions. TBD (staff) marks a slot staff fill. Guidance for staff goes in <!-- STAFF: … --> comments, which show in the source but not on the rendered page. Bench hardware, wiring, the four action taps, and the telemetry format are defined once in the Station Reference Card; labs link there instead of repeating them.
# Lab N: Title
**Status:** `skeleton`\
**Weeks:** X–Y (Parts NA, NB)\
**Reading:** [Chapter A: Title](../../../books/vol4/AA_slug/AA_slug.qmd)\
**Competencies:** `A1`, `D1`\
**Due:** end of Week W
---
## 1. Overview
**The physical question.** One or two sentences: the systems relationship this lab measures.
**Purpose.** One paragraph: why this lab exists, and what the student understands at the end that they did not before.
**Core concepts:**
- **Concept name:** the one idea, in a phrase. Three or four per lab; every part should serve at least one.
**Comes in from Lab N−1:** artifacts this lab uses.\
**Goes out to Lab N+1:** artifacts this lab produces.\
**If Lab N−1 did not finish:** the staff-provided substitute.
---
## 2. Learning Objectives
By the end of this lab, you will be able to:
- Observable ability, verb first.
---
## 3. Instructions
> **Standard bench:** see the [Station Reference Card](station-reference.md).
**Additional setup:** TBD (staff)
### Part NA: Name (Week X)
**Goal:** one sentence. **Checkpoint:** the artifact staff check.
TBD (staff)
<!-- STAFF: steps with real commands, what to record, the expected result,
any disturbance or failure test, and pitfalls from the Student Zero run.
One part must fit one 3-hour studio session; long compute runs between
sessions. -->
### Part NB: Name (Week Y)
**Goal:** one sentence. **Checkpoint:** the artifact staff check.
TBD (staff)
---
## 4. Deliverables
| # | Evidence | Threshold |
|:---:|:---|:---|
| 1 | **What the team hands in** | TBD (staff) |
<!-- STAFF: thresholds come from the Student Zero run on the reference
station, not from a spec sheet. -->
*Staff signs off `A1` and `D1` on the team's [Competency Card](../curriculum/student-competencies.md).*
---
## 5. Reflection
1. A question that asks what the measurement means.
2. A question that connects it back to the chapter.