MATH PI DAY ACTIVITIES

March 14 is Pi Day, giving math lovers all around the world a perfect reason to geek out. Good thing there are loads of
hands-on activities available to help you celebrate with your students.

1. ASSEMBLE A PI DAY PAPER CHAIN

Just like pi, paper chains can be endless in activity time, length, and fun! As a class or grade,
create a Pi Day chain with loops of construction paper using a different color for each of the
10 digits. Each colored chain link represents a decimal place or a digit.

2. DO THE MATH

Provide plenty of circular objects like coffee cans, soup cans, pie tins, paper plates, bowls,
CDs, and candles. Then have students measure the diameter and circumference, divide the
circumference by the diameter, and watch their amazement as the number comes out to about
3.14 every single time.

3. ROLL PI DIGITS WITH DICE

Have students gather in groups of two, three, or four and then race to see who can
be the first to roll the first 10 digits of pi. You’ll need some dice and printed versions
of this game template.

4. MEMORIZE THOSE PI DIGITS!

Teach your students about the current record holder for reciting the digits of pi. Rajveer Meena recited 70,000 digits in 9
hours, 7 minutes (while blindfolded) on March 21, 2015. Then have them memorize digits using this catchy song about
the first 100 digits of pi. Play it in the background while your students work on other projects, and they’ll know it by heart
in no time.

5. MAKE PAPER PLATE PIES

Little ones may not be ready to understand the concept of pi itself, but they can get in
on the fun with this activity that introduces them to circles and ratios. All you need
are some paper plates, construction paper, and a few other basic supplies.
Students mix and match the pieces to make a complete “pie,” learning more about
circles along the way.

6. GO OUTSIDE FOR A SUPERSIZED PI

Need some outdoor Pi Day activities? This one gives your class a chance to enjoy the fresh air. Choose one student to
stand in the middle of a grassy area and have them hold one end of a known length of string. A second student will walk
the other end of the string around to form a circle. The remaining students will spread out evenly to form the circle’s
circumference.

Use a tape measure (or measuring wheel, if your circle is large enough) to find the diameter, using the center student to
help measure through the circle’s center. Finally, measure the circumference and have students calculate for pi.

7. MEASURE ALL THE CIRCLES

Set out a variety of circular objects. Using a string and yardstick, students will measure the length of each circle’s
circumference and its diameter and record their work on a chart.
8. CREATE YOUR OWN PI PUZZLE

9. COMPLETE A PI DAY WORD SEARCH

Our pi day word search activity challenges you to find as many circular objects hidden in the word search as possible.
(Hint: There are 47 circular words)

10. COLOR A PI DAY COLORING PAGE

This coloring sheet proudly proclaims that “we’re all made of π !”

11. OUTDOOR CIRCLE ACTIVITY

Take some pi outside. The number pi represents the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter, and it doesn’t
matter how small or large the circle is. Have students calculate the circumference and diameter using any unit of
measurement.

12. PI-FIDELITY SONGS

Divide your students into groups for this Pi Day project for high school. Have them take a well-known song and rewrite
the lyrics to focus on pi-what it is, why it matters, how it is used. And so on.