Funny Activities To Celebrate Pi Day | Pi Day Activities
Let’s see what activities that we bring you for Pi day!
Measure it all
Find some circular objects at home or around your math class and ask your students to measure the diameter and circumference. Have them divide the circumference by the diameter and see their surprise that the result is always 3.14!
Remembering Pi
Ask your students how many numbers in the sequence of π they can recall. The world record for how many numbers have been memorized for pi is currently held by Rajveer Meena at 70,000! Share this with your students, set a timer, and make it a game to see what team can remember the most numbers in a minute! You can give out little circular foods or candies as a prize to the winning team.
Pie Party
Ask your students to bring in one piece of pie for Pi Day. You can ask your students to get into groups of 4-5 and try to put their slices of pie together to create a circular pie. They may have to cut and change the shapes of their pieces to do so, which is a lesson in angles and diameter, and at the end you can all eat!
Pi History
Give your students a lesson on the history and origins of pi. Archimedes of Syracuse (287–212 BC) was the first mathematician to discover and use the calculated sequence, but the symbol “π” was not adopted and used until the 1700’s. In 1988, a physicist Larry Shaw from an exploratorium in San Francisco decided to celebrate the day with tea and fruit pies, which math lovers thought was a great idea, and since then the day has been an annual celebration. However, it wasn’t until 2009 that Pi Day was declared a national holiday by the U.S. Congress. How fascinating!
Life of Pi
Have a movie day and watch the film “Life of Pi”. This movie tackles many relationship and spiritual issues regarding the main character and his struggle. Ask your students to think about Pi and how the character in the movie is connected to the concept of “π” and its calculations in math (Pi’s was interested in the infinite and unexplainable world).
Need for Speed
Write a long version of pi on the dry erase board (at least 50 numbers) and see who can read it aloud without making any mistakes. Set a timer so they feel rushed and have to speak quickly. This is such a fun way for students to giggle and practice learning the sequence of π.
Pi Day Field Trip
There is a list of businesses doing promotions to celebrate Pi Day. You can share this with your students the day before so they can order pizzas from one of these establishments for a pizza party!
Paper Plate Pi
The day before, pass out paper plates to all your students. Give then a digit from π and ask them to go home and write the digit on the plate and decorate it. The following day bring string and hang the students plates up around the room in the order they go in the sequence of π.
Musical Chairs
Get your class to move their chairs into a circle pattern and play musical chairs! You can see the circles changing in size as the number of students goes down, and the students who get out can snack on some circle shapes cookies!
Pi Song Writing Contest
Have your students in groups of 4-5 and get them humming and rhyming as they try to write songs inspired by π. You can play them an example or two to give them some ideas and get them started! When the groups finish you can hold a mini talent show and let the students show off their Pi appreciation with some singing/rapping skills.
Pi Card Game
For this activity get a few decks of cards and take out all the face cards (aces represent 1). Give each student 7 cards and put the deck face down in the middle of the circle. The players must put down the cards in the order of π so first 3, then 1, followed by 4…etc. If the player does not have the required number they pick up a card and it’s the next players turn. Someone either plays all of their cards or the deck runs out and the players with the least cards in their hand wins!
Source: Internet
