# Guided Exercise: Plan a Directory Structure on Paper First

Before you build anything in the Lab, plan it — this is the same discipline you'll use later
when planning a Kubernetes namespace layout or a Git repository structure.

## Your task

You're setting up a small project called `weather-app`. On paper, sketch a directory tree
containing:

- A place for source code
- A place for documentation
- A place for tests
- A single hidden configuration file at the project's root

Write out the exact `mkdir` and file-creation commands you'd use, including whether each path
you write is absolute or relative.

## A worked shape to check yourself against

```
mkdir -p weather-app/src weather-app/docs weather-app/tests
echo "ready" > weather-app/.config
```

(Or with an absolute path: `mkdir -p /srv/weather-app/src ...`.) The `-p` flag matters here —
without it, `mkdir` refuses to create `weather-app/src` if `weather-app` doesn't already exist.

## Instructor Notes

**Facilitation:** Have students commit to their command in writing before revealing the worked
answer — the value is in noticing what `-p` actually buys them, not just copying a correct
command.

**Approximate timing:** 8-10 minutes live discussion; 5 minutes self-paced.

**Common mistake to watch for:** forgetting `mkdir -p` and getting a "No such file or
directory" error when creating a nested path in one command — a good moment to connect back to
Module 2's exit-code lesson (that error IS a non-zero exit code).