Build Your Own Ecosystem

Course summary

• Ages: 8–14
• Prerequisites: none
• Length: six modules, paced across six weeks because the ecosystem needs time
• Format: self-paced lessons with a downloadable observation log
• Access: 12 months from enrolment
• Supervision: adult help with the build; observation is independent

What learners will be able to do

• Explain the roles of producers, decomposers, water and light in a closed system
• Build a sealed jar ecosystem that survives
• Record observations consistently over six weeks
• Set up a controlled comparison by changing one variable
• Explain a change in the jar using evidence from their own log
• Describe what happens to a system when one part is removed

Curriculum

1. What makes a system living
2. Build day — layers, plants, water, sealing
3. Week one observations — condensation, light and the first changes
4. The comparison jar — one variable, changed deliberately
5. Reading your data — patterns, not single days
6. Explain your system — final report and presentation

What is included

• Six modules of self-paced lessons
• A printable six-week observation log
• Build instructions with troubleshooting for mould, condensation and die-off
• A comparison-investigation frame
• Certificate of Completion

What you need

• Two clean jars with lids, small stones, potting soil, moss or small plants
• A spray bottle and a sunny-but-not-hot windowsill
• No animals are collected or kept in this course

Access and refunds

• Access begins as soon as your payment is confirmed. You will receive an enrolment email with your login and a Start Here guide.
• You need an account so your progress is saved. You can create it during checkout.
• Works on a laptop, tablet or phone in any current browser. Nothing to install.
• Access runs for 12 months from enrolment, and you can revisit any lesson during that time.
• Refunds: you may request a refund within 7 days of enrolment if you have consumed less than 20% of the course — measured by lessons marked complete and files downloaded. After that, or once downloadable course files have been taken, the purchase is final. This does not affect rights you have under mandatory consumer law. See the Refund & Cancellation Policy and Course Access Policy.
• A “Certificate of Completion” is issued at the end. It is a record of finishing this course — it is not an accredited qualification.

About the certificate

Learners who complete every lesson receive a Certificate of Completion. It records that the course was finished. Watershed Learning is not an accredited institution and does not award credit, grades or qualifications.

Common questions

What if our jar fails?

That is a result, not a failure — module three and the troubleshooting pages turn it into the most interesting part of the course.

Is there a matching kit?

The Hydroponics & Water Science Kit extends the same ideas into growing plants in water.