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Seventh Grade Math Students Enjoy Pi -Day

For Pi Day, MS Math students form symbol for Pi

As Easy As Pi

March 15-16, 2021

To bring awareness about the mathematical concept of Pi, Sayville Seventh-grade Math teachers Frank DeCicco and Kim Pacia created a special Pi Day event for their students. 

Pi (π) Day—March 14—was founded in 1988 by physicist Larry Shaw at the Exploratorium and, according to the Exploratorium Website, has “become an international holiday, celebrated live and online all around the world. The numbers in the date (3/14) match the first three digits of the mathematical constant Pi (π).”

While this year, March 14 was a Sunday, the Middle School Math teachers were determined to give their students something to celebrate over a two-day period. They put together “a Goose chase or scavenger hunt for our students to get out of the classroom and explore the building to look for anything and everything related to Pi,” said Mr. DeCicco. “Whether that was taking Pictures of circles they could find around the building, taking Pictures of objects that have Pi in the name, sPinning in circles and performing cartwheels, or finding Mr. Decker and Dr. Castoro to recite the first few digits of Pi, students were really engaged and enjoyed exploring and learning just what exactly Pi represents.”

Thanks to DeCicco’s and Pacia’s imaginative Math lessons, their Seventh-graders had a ball—a 3-D circle—exploring the evidence of Pi everywhere! 

Some facts about Pi:

  • Since the mid-18th century Pi has also been represented by the Greek letter π.

 

  • In fact, the word “pi” itself was actually derived from the first letter of the Greek word perimetros, which means circumference.

 

  • In mathematics, this infinite number is crucial because of what it represents in relation to a circle—it’s the constant ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter. Pi is also essential to engineering, making modern construction possible.

 

  • The seemingly never-ending number needs to be abbreviated for problem solving, and the first three digits (3.14) or the fraction 22/7, are commonly accepted as accurate estimations. 

 

  • In 1988, Pi Day Founder physicist Larry Shaw selected March 14 for Pi Day because the numerical date (3.14) represents the first three digits of Pi, and it also happens to be Albert Einstein’s birthday.

 

  • In 2009, Pi Day became an official national holiday when the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation.

 

  • Now Pi Day is celebrated globally.

 

Snap Shots of Pi Day Fun

Click on this image to see the video of Pi Day activities