Ben Porat Yosef’s outdoor classroom was active during the past week, blurring the walls between inside and outside learning and allowing the students to experience nature. Second grade students dug up different objects that they buried last October to see what happened to them. They discovered that some items (apple and paper) were missing and then learned about and discussed decomposition and its role in nature. After studying bird nests, third grade students collected natural materials to become engineers and attempt to use engineering principles in order to build their own nests later this week. Fourth grade students collected different items that they found on the property and will work to determine where these came from, how they came to the area and why it matters. Fifth grade students began investigating the health of the Van Saun Mill Brook, a tributary of the Hackensack River that abuts the school, by performing water chemistry tests to determine the levels of dissolved oxygen, pH, nitrate and phosphate. They continue to learn about the brook, its location in the watershed, sources of pollution and ecological significance.�