Skill: course-build → write-mcqs → write-explanation, design-check-sequence @ d1a2a04
Topic 33 — What living things need — the PP100's ten question types, with their exemplars
What this page is. James approves a bank's question TYPES before the bank is generated (vault: A bank is reviewed as its question types first, one exemplar each, 28 Sep 2026). This sheet writes the exemplars in full, exactly as they sit in content/G3T33.py (PP100, flagged TYPE_SHEET_ONLY). Ten types for four atoms, one exemplar each. No other bank item exists yet. Once the types stand, about fifty items are generated from them, varying the living thing, the place, the names and the framing, easy-heavy.
Revised 29 Sep 2026 after the non-author review (REVIEW_G3T33_2026-09-29.md): type 8's exemplar was a quiz item with the nouns changed and is now a plant with a ribbon (F03), tagged to the provisional need / want atom LIF3-P01; type 4's key is a desert fox, not the quiz's desert snake (F11); type 5's key no longer repeats the stem's word "damp" and the freezer is gone (F19); type 7's key is "a chilled room with a pool" (F19); the key string is now two of each letter (F12). Types 2 and 6 stay tagged medium on the sheet's argument (the taught rule applied to the surprising member); the reviewer reads them as one-step recall (easy) — James's call (F26).
James's rulings applied. Hard items are typed, never MCQs (28 Sep night): two text-entry types (the missing need from a list; the need worked out from what an animal does). Easy and medium are four-option MCQs. No stem leans on a video; no option bundles a verdict with a reason; every stem is a positive question; no exemplar is a lesson, quiz, attached or practice item with a noun changed (the inventory at the foot is the check); no headache character (Teodor, Edda, Sibyl, Tycho, Odessa, Emil) appears in an item; the one claim-maker on the sheet (Cosima) appears nowhere else in the topic. Nothing James has rejected appears here.
How to read a type line. Each says what the stem asks, what the four options are (the kind of thing), and gives its exemplar scene. Every MCQ has a why (no per-option feedback in the bank; the engine prints Correct / Not quite). Tags follow depth of reasoning: easy = one living thing sorted by one need, or one need read off one described case; medium = the rule applied to a surprising member (the plant's food, the fish's air, the zoo animal's place) or a want picked out from among the needs; hard = the need produced (typed) after holding all four and checking a list, or after reading what an animal does.
The ten types
| Type | Item | Atom | Tag | Form | The stem asks… | The options / the accept | Exemplar scene |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | PP-1 | LIF3-003 | easy | MCQ | which of four things needs food to stay alive — one living thing (a surprising member: a plant) among three non-living things | a skateboard / a strawberry plant / a brick / a bicycle | a strawberry plant |
| 2 | PP-5 | LIF3-003 | medium | MCQ | a named plant never eats: how does it get its food | It eats the soil. / It makes its own food. / It drinks food from the rain. / Bees bring it food. | a holly bush |
| 3 | PP-2 | LIF3-004 | easy | MCQ, drawn | a drawn plant, not looked after for a week, leaves drooping: what has it run out of | more soil / a bigger pot / water / a warmer room | a pepper plant (pepper_droop_pp_photo) |
| 4 | PP-3 | LIF3-004 | easy | MCQ | which of four things needs water to stay alive — one living thing from a dry place among three non-living things | a coin / a kite / a plastic bucket / a desert fox | a desert fox |
| 5 | PP-4 | LIF3-006 | easy | MCQ | a living thing whose place is named in the stem: which of four places suits it | the muddy edge of a pond / a hot, dry desert / the top of a sunny stone wall / a dusty attic | a newt |
| 6 | PP-6 | LIF3-005 | medium | MCQ | a fish that lives under water all its life: where does it get the air it needs | from the mud at the bottom / from the food it eats / from the water around it / from the sunlight on the lake | a carp in a lake |
| 7 | PP-7 | LIF3-006 | medium | MCQ | a zoo wants to keep an animal from a named kind of place: what must it give the animal | a hot, dry sand pit / a warm forest room / a dark, dry cave / a chilled room with a pool | a polar bear |
| 8 | PP-8 | LIF3-P01 (provisional: a need is not a want) + LIF3-003, 004, 005 (pair) | medium | MCQ | a living thing has three needs met and one extra thing: which can it stay alive without | the red ribbon / the sunlight / the water / the air | a tomato plant on a balcony with a ribbon tied to its stem |
| 9 | PP-9 | LIF3-004 + LIF3-003, 005, 006 (pair) | hard | text | a pet has three of the four needs met, listed: which need is missing — type its name | need_accept("water"): water, a drink, water to drink… | Cosima's pet lizard |
| 10 | PP-10 | LIF3-005 | hard | text | an animal's behaviour is described (it surfaces every few minutes): which need makes it do that — type its name | need_accept("air"): air, fresh air, air to breathe… | a dolphin |
Hard because (type 9): the student holds all four needs, checks each against the three on the list, and names the one that is not there — the answer is produced, not recognised. Hard because (type 10): the need is not named or hinted in the stem ("breathes" does not appear); the student reads what the dolphin does, works out why, and types the need. Medium because (type 2): the rule is applied to the surprising member — the plant that never eats — against the eats-soil trap. Medium because (type 6): the same, for the fish under water against "it does not need air" (kept out of the options so the four stay parallel; the trap lives in the lesson claims). Medium because (type 7): the place rule is run forwards to a fresh animal at the zoo. Medium because (type 8): a want is picked out from among three met needs — and the scene kind is a PLANT, so the three needs are its sunlight (food), water and air, not a pet's bowls.
Bank notes for the generator. Types 1 and 4: the one living thing is always a SURPRISING member (a plant; a desert or cave animal; a tiny creature), never a dog or a child, and the three non-living things are things a child might half-suspect (a kite in the wind, a balloon full of air, a wind-up toy) — never three rocks. Type 3: the plant kind and the days vary; the photo shows dry soil and drooping leaves and never a watering can. Type 5: the stem names the place the living thing needs in plain words ("a damp place near water"); the four options are four kinds of place, one matching. Type 7: the animal's home kind is named in the stem ("from the ice and the cold sea"); the key restates it as a place the zoo can build. Type 8: the scene kinds rotate — a plant with a ribbon, a farm animal with a bell, a pond creature with an ornament — never the kept-pet scene the quiz and the practice set use; three needs met and one want, the want never in the same position twice running. Type 9: the three met needs are always three DIFFERENT needs, so exactly one is missing; the accept list is need_accept(word), generated. Type 10: the behaviour never contains the need's word or "breathe / drink / eat"; instances — a seal surfacing, a bear at a stream lapping, a caterpillar munching (food), a hermit crab hunting for a shell (a place that suits it).
Coverage (every atom alone, and the pairs)
| Atom | Types testing it alone | Pair types |
|---|---|---|
| LIF3-003 every living thing needs food | 1, 2 | 8 (with P01, 004, 005), 9 (with 004) |
| LIF3-004 every living thing needs water | 3, 4 | 8, 9 |
| LIF3-P01 a need is not a want (provisional) | 8 | 8 (with 003, 004, 005) |
| LIF3-005 every living thing needs air | 6, 10 | 9 (the lizard's list names air) |
| LIF3-006 a place that suits it | 5, 7 | 9 |
At most two alone-types per atom (James: "unlikely that you're going to need more than two question types per atom"). Order in the file: easy PP-1…PP-4 → medium PP-5…PP-8 → hard PP-9, PP-10. Keys of the eight MCQs, in file order: PP-1 B · PP-2 C · PP-3 D · PP-4 A · PP-5 B · PP-6 C · PP-7 D · PP-8 A (two of each letter). Typed items: 2 of 10 on the sheet; in a bank of about fifty, types 9 and 10 supply 12–15 typed items on fresh animals and lists.
Design-move inventory (every move on the page, then the bank's)
| Move (what the student does with what) | Lesson-side instances | Bank exemplar |
|---|---|---|
| sort a described thing: does it need X — yes / no (living, or a non-living near-miss) | L01 q1–q3, q6, q8 (caterpillar, brick, oak, millipede, teddy); L02 q1–q3, q5, q6, q8, q9; L03 q1–q3, q5, q6, q8, q9; L01-V (pea plant), SUMMARY-1 (hen); PR-2, PR-4, PR-8 | PP-1, PP-3: the four-option form — ONE living surprising member among three non-living things (a strawberry plant; a desert fox) — a form no quiz uses (quizzes are two-option yes / no) |
| where a plant's food comes from | L01 q4 (daisy: three options); SUMMARY-2 (ivy); PR-3 (a 500-year-old redwood — a different scene kind) | PP-5: a holly bush, four options including "drinks food from the rain" and "bees bring it food" |
| what happens to a living thing with no X | L01 q5 (hamster, food, two options); L02 q11 (gerbil, water) | — (a bank form would need four happenings; not on this sheet) |
| what a drooping plant has run out of | L02 q10 (mint, drawn, three options); L02-V (basil) | PP-2: a pepper plant, drawn, four options (the distractors are pot, soil and room — none a need) |
| where a water animal gets its air | L03 q10 (trout, three options) | PP-6: a carp, four parallel "from…" options |
| infer the need from what fish do when a tank's pump stops | L03 q11 (transfer) | — |
| what an animal comes up for / which need it is meeting | L03-V (sea turtle: food / sunshine / air); PR-5 (a pony after a gallop, three options) | PP-10 (typed): a dolphin surfacing every few minutes — the need is produced, and the stem carries no breathing word |
| which place suits a named living thing (three or four places) | L04 q1 (crocodile), q7 (moss); L04-V (water lily); SUMMARY-3 (otter); PR-7 (salamander) | PP-4: a newt, four places |
| does this place suit it — yes / no | L04 q2 (toad), q3, q5, q6, q9, q10 (woodlouse) | — (two-option form; the four-option form is type 5) |
| a zoo animal still needs its kind of place | L04 q4 (Britt's claim, bare yes / no) | PP-7: the polar bear — what the zoo must give it, four places |
| a want among needs | L04 q11 (Kasia's puppy, three — the kept-pet scene); PR-10 (Ragnar's donkey with a bell, three — a farm animal); L01 q9 (Harlow's kitten, claim) | PP-8: a tomato plant with a ribbon — a plant, so the needs are sunlight, water and air; four options |
| the missing need from a list | — (no lesson-side instance; the practice FRQ asks for all four) | PP-9 (typed): Cosima's lizard has food, air and a place — water is missing |
| claims (bare yes / no) | L01 q7, q9, q10; L02 q4, q7; L03 q4, q7; L04 q4, q8; PR-6, PR-11 (Signe's perch — the rule applied to a scene, not the bare rule) | none on the sheet — a bare claim has two options; the bank's MCQs need four |
| the term by recall | L01 q11 (need), L04 q12 (suits), PR-13, PR-14 | none — the practice set's job |
No bank exemplar shares a scene with a lesson, quiz, attached or practice item (strawberry plant, pepper plant, desert fox, newt, holly bush, carp, polar bear, the balcony tomato plant, Cosima's lizard, dolphin appear nowhere else in the topic — the lizard as a PET with a tank is a different scene from the wild desert lizard in L02 q2 and L04 q5, which the reviewer flagged; noted for James), and no two exemplars share a move.
The exemplars, in full
Type 1 — PP-1 · LIF3-003 · easy
Stem: Which of these needs food to stay alive?
- a skateboard
- a strawberry plant ← key
- a brick
- a bicycle
Why: Every living thing needs food to stay alive. / A strawberry plant is a living thing: it makes its own food. / A skateboard, a brick and a bicycle are not living things. / So the strawberry plant needs food.
Type 3 — PP-2 · LIF3-004 · easy · drawing pepper_droop_pp_photo
Stem: Nobody has looked after this pepper plant for a week, and its leaves droop. What has it run out of?
- more soil
- a bigger pot
- water ← key
- a warmer room
Why: Every living thing needs water to stay alive. / Nobody has watered the pepper plant for a week. / So its leaves droop: it has run out of water.
Type 4 — PP-3 · LIF3-004 · easy
Stem: Which of these needs water to stay alive?
- a coin
- a kite
- a plastic bucket
- a desert fox ← key
Why: Every living thing needs water to stay alive. / A desert fox is a living thing, even in the dry desert. / A coin, a kite and a bucket are not living things. / So the desert fox needs water.
Type 5 — PP-4 · LIF3-006 · easy
Stem: A newt needs a damp place near water. Which place suits it?
- the muddy edge of a pond ← key
- a hot, dry desert
- the top of a sunny stone wall
- a dusty attic
Why: Every living thing needs a place that suits it. / A newt needs a damp place near water. / The muddy edge of a pond is wet and beside water. / So that place suits the newt.
Type 2 — PP-5 · LIF3-003 · medium
Stem: A holly bush never eats anything. How does it get its food?
- It eats the soil.
- It makes its own food. ← key
- It drinks food from the rain.
- Bees bring it food.
Why: Every living thing needs food. / A plant does not eat: it makes its own food, using sunlight. / It does not eat the soil, and rain and bees bring it no food. / So the holly bush makes its own food.
Type 6 — PP-6 · LIF3-005 · medium
Stem: A carp lives under the water in a lake all its life. Where does it get the air it needs?
- from the mud at the bottom
- from the food it eats
- from the water around it ← key
- from the sunlight on the lake
Why: Every living thing needs air. / A little air is mixed into the lake water. / The carp takes in that air from the water. / So the carp gets its air from the water around it.
Type 7 — PP-7 · LIF3-006 · medium
Stem: A zoo wants to keep a polar bear, an animal from the ice and the cold sea. What must the zoo give it?
- a hot, dry sand pit
- a warm forest room
- a dark, dry cave
- a chilled room with a pool ← key
Why: Every living thing needs a place that suits it. / A polar bear comes from the ice and the cold sea. / A place that suits it is cold, with water to swim in. / So the zoo must give it a chilled room with a pool.
Type 8 — PP-8 · LIF3-P01 (provisional) + LIF3-003, 004, 005 · medium
Stem: A tomato plant on a balcony has sunlight to make its food, water from the can, air, and a red ribbon tied to its stem. Which of these can it stay alive without?
- the red ribbon ← key
- the sunlight
- the water
- the air
Why: A need is something a living thing cannot stay alive without. / The tomato plant needs sunlight to make its food, water, and air. / It stays alive without the ribbon. / So the tomato plant can stay alive without the red ribbon.
Type 9 — PP-9 · LIF3-004 + LIF3-003, 005, 006 · hard · text entry
Stem: Cosima's pet lizard has food every day, plenty of air, and a warm, dry tank that suits it. Which need is missing? Type the name of the need.
Accept: need_accept("water") — water · a water · the water · waters · some water · its water · a drink · water to drink · drinking water (the grader folds case)
Why: Every living thing needs food, water, air and a place that suits it. / The lizard has food, air and a place that suits it. / The one need not on the list is water. / So water is the missing need.
Hard because: all four needs are held at once, three are checked off against the list, and the fourth is produced.
Type 10 — PP-10 · LIF3-005 · hard · text entry
Stem: A dolphin swims up to the top of the sea every few minutes, then dives again. Which need makes it come up? Type the name of the need.
Accept: need_accept("air") — air · an air · the air · airs · some air · its air · fresh air · air to breathe · breathing
Why: Every living thing needs air to stay alive. / A dolphin cannot take in air from the water. / So it swims up to the top of the sea to breathe in air. / Air is the need that makes it come up.
Hard because: the stem carries no breathing word; the student reads what the dolphin does, works out why, and types the need.