Pi Day was started by a children’s museum in the 1980s as a way to get kids interested in math. Since then, teachers and parent groups have found ever more creative ways to make math fun and celebrate the famous number (abbreviated as 3.14) each March 14.
Pi(e) Day
Pi is the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter. Many schools observe the day with activities using pies or pizzas. You might recruit teachers who agree to be “pied,” then invite students to vote for one teacher to take a pie in the face by putting coins in a jar. Or you could help teachers with their Pi Day lessons by supplying pizzas for their classes. Teachers can use the round pizzas to demonstrate lessons before students eat them for lunch.
Family Fun
Hold a family night focused on math. Count off attendees from 1 to 9. Then recite the digits of pi, with a person representing each number moving to the appropriate place in order, until you run out of people. Plan math games and invite students to challenge their parents. End the evening with a helping of pie for everyone.
Pi Contest
Challenge students to write poems about pi or to memorize as many digits as they can. Give winners storybooks that involve pi, such as Sir Cumference and the Dragon of Pi by Cindy Neuschwander, or gift certificates to a local pizza place.
