Sunday, 5 March 2017

Celebrating Pi Day...it's not just for Math class!

Hi there!

I am here to tell you that I LOVE Pi Day!
Every year March 14 comes around I get a little giddy! I think every math teacher understands.
I always make it my personal mission to make a big deal out of it, and get the kids super excited, days in advance.

Here's a glimpse at how I celebrate Pi day:

Every year Pi day looks a little different. I've celebrated the day simply within my math classes, I've celebrated with my whole team, and I've also organized the day for a whole grade level. I've done small scale and large scale celebrations, and they have always been well worth the organization required. The kids (and teachers) always have a blast!

One misconception I think a lot of teachers have about Pi Day is that it is all about Math...not true! When I first sat down with a colleague of mine, we made sure to integrate our activities within all the core subject areas. This way we were able to convince our team teachers to get on board with us, to make Pi Day an all day celebration! Research a little Pi history, write a funny poem or song about Pi, integrate some Pi Art, the possibilities are endless.

Here's just a few of the activities I do throughout the day.

1. Pi Memorization - I don't think Pi day is complete without a memorization competition. A week in advance I inform students of the competition and provide them with cards with the first 100 or so digits of Pi. I had a student last year blow my class record of 170 digits out of the water, by memorizing 217! My mouth was literally on the floor!


2. Pi Facts - Read interesting facts about Pi to your students throughout the day, or post them around your classroom. If there is time, use these facts to create a short trivia game that students can compete in at the end of the day. 

3. Pi challenges - I do a couple of these throughout the day as quick engagement activities. One activity the kids really enjoy is making a list of all the words they can think of that start with "pi".

4. Pi Centers - Have students work through a series of centers to learn even more about this amazing number.


5. "Pi"e activities - Pi Day wouldn't be complete without some actual pie. Two ideas - pie eating competition, pie throwing auction - enough said!

Want to celebrate Pi Day, but don't have the time to plan it?
Check out my full resource for a fun-filled Pi Day here.

Happy Pi Day to all my fellow Math teachers! Have an ePIc one!