This page is the heart of TeachPi.org.  It's where you've come to find more than 50 ideas for ways to make Pi Day entertaining, educational, tasty, and fun.  And the list will continue to grow.

This is the home for all Pi Day activities, large and small, silly and thoughtful, that add to the celebration of learning on Pi Day. 

You can navigate the list by clicking on the blue links above, next to "activities."  They'll take you to smaller, topical lists, where you can browse, see what others have done, and decide what's right for your school, this year.

We have scoured the accounts of hundreds of Pi Day celebrations, and built what we've found into a thorough, descriptive collection of ideas.  Even better, we know there are far more ideas out there that we haven't heard about, perhaps an idea that the teacher down the hall cooked up on her own many years ago, and we would love to hear all of them.  Let's keep the list growing.  Send them over to us at:



Have fun!   Here's a sample list of some of our favorites...


Hold a classroom or school-wide contest for the recitation of the most digits from memory. Offer a free pizza pi(e) to the winner.

»»»» You should expect the winner to memorize about 30 or 40 digits, but every once in a while, a student like Gaurav Raja (Roanoke, VA) comes along. He's up to a whopping 10,980, finally securing the North American record.


No Pi Day is complete without treats!  Encourage students and fellow teachers to bring in cakes, cookies, and pies with a Pi Day theme.

»»»» Students at Chittenango H.S. in Syracuse, NY who brought in pi-themed treats received extra credit points.


As a class or grade, create a pi chain with loops of construction paper, using a different color for each of the ten digits.

»»»» Word has it that Leslie H.S. in Leslie, Michigan has set a new standard for pi chains everywhere: 13,726 links!  And they did it all in a single school day!
»»»» Bloomfield H.S. in Bloomfield, NJ spent Pi Day 2006 assembling a pi chain of 8,000 links.
»»»» Students at Dallas H.S. in Dallas Township, PA created a pi chain that was 7,147 digits long. It stretched nearly half a mile.


Take an overhead photo of your students outside, forming the first several digits of the number. Third graders can form the 3, first graders the 1, and so on. A great image for the local newspaper!

»»»» This precise photo was taken at the International School, Borneo (ISB) in March, 2005.
»»»» Why not make the math teachers the decimal point?

 
The day before Pi Day, pass out paper plates, and assign each student a digit. Have them draw the number on the plate, and color and decorate it. On Pi Day, hang them along a string or on the hallway wall, or have everyone hold their plate and stand in one big circle.

»»»» At Foothill Knolls Elem. in Ontario, CA, a square of more than 200 students was formed outside the building, each one holding his or her decorated paper plate. "We wanted to do just more than tell them about it," said sixth grade teacher Beth Stone. "This allows them to actually become a part of Pi."


Ask students to compose an original song, poem, or piece of art about Pi Day or the number pi.  Hold presentations/exhibits, and present any artistic awards, on Pi Day.

»»»» How about a "Pi-ku" poetry contest? (Think Haiku.) For example:

Unending digits...
Why not keep it simple, like
Twenty-two sevenths?


Find the fair-share size of each slice of pie that your students are about to eat! As a demo or as group work, take the number of pies donated, an assumed diameter per pie, and the number of students in the class, and find the area of each piece when everyone gets an equal slice.

»»»» For a further step, calculate the slice's volume, or its surface area (assuming the pies are short cylinders!).
»»»» Angie Mentges' class at Sidney M.S. in Dayton, OH divided 11 pies among 28 students.


Hold a pie-baking contest, where students and teachers bake and submit pies to a panel of judges, maybe drawn from the community. Raise money for a charity or your math club by selling the remaining slices of each pie.

»»»» Teachers at Schroeder M.S. in Grand Forks, ND raised $125 for their local Humane Society through a Pi Day pie bakeoff they called the "Power of Pie" contest. Judging of the 22 pies was done by the newspaper's food editor, and a few community leaders. Aside from the overall winners, ribbons were also given to the Best Presentation and Ugliest Pie.


Decorate your clothes with the pi symbol, and have the students do the same! Let's hope the Art department will help you out with some markers, glue, glitter, and a little puffy paint.

»»»» About 100 math students at Chittenango H.S. in Syracuse, NY decorated t-shirts, shorts, necklaces, socks, jeans, and hair accessories for the big day.


Play pi-themed songs over the P.A. system between classes, to get people in the Pi Day spirit.  We're talking about classic hits that relate to Pi Day, as opposed to actual Pi Day carols.

»»»» Dutch Fork H.S. in Columbia, SC played "American Pie" and "Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch" over the speakers during passing periods on the big day.


Have students toss cream pies at the faces of teachers or administrators. Make sure to charge a buck or two for each toss to raise money for charity; they'll certainly pay it!


Divide your class into teams, and track their group scores as they compete in a series of Pi Day events. Award team and individual medals (or pies, or other round treats).

»»»» Student teams at the Montgomery Academy wore colors to match their pie-themed team names, such as "The Banana Creams," "The Key Limes," and "The Oreos." They faced off in speed math tests, Pi Bingo, brain teasers, and computer games.


Hold a hula-hoop contest, as part of the festivities in an assembly or lunchtime Pi Day event. Hey, they're circular!

»»»» St. Scholastica Academy in New Orleans, LA held a Pi Day hula contest, perhaps to burn off the calories from the Moon Pies everyone was given during first period.


Use Pi Day as a reason to go out with your department, perhaps for an evening of pie at a local restaurant-bakery.

»»»» The Dupage County Science Fiction Society holds an outing each year at various restaurants in Wheaton, IL, drawing around 100 folks. It's open to the public, but they do enforce an interesting dress code: Guests must carry a laptop, calculator, abacus, slide rule, or other math gadgets. All of these must be used in calculating the tip, of course.


In small groups or individually, have students give a short speech (1-5 min.) on how pi, or math in general, is involved in their favorite hobbies.

»»»» "They're up there talking about soccer and horseback riding and ballet, but it gets them thinking about math and talking about math," said Corrine Biscardi, of her students at Galvin M.S. in Wakefield, MA.


At a school-wide Pi Day assembly, hold a school spirit contest to see which grade can shout "3 point 1 4 1 5 9!" the very loudest. Or, try a longer chant. (see below)

»»»» The sixth grade beat the older classes to claim the Warrior Spirit Stick at Stephen Mack M.S. in Rockford, IL in 2003.
»»»» Here's an example of a good, loud school chant.  It can be responsive, where each line is yelled by a different grade, and then all grades shout the final line, inserting their own number for maximal school-spirit effect.

We love Pi Day to the core!  March 14th is 3 1 4!
Here's where Math gets really fun!  Pi starts 3 point 1 4 1!
Let's make Pi Day come alive!  Let's go, 3 1 4 1 5!
Pi Day's (4th) Grade's chance to shine!  3 point 1 4 1 5 9!


Pick up a menu from a local pizzeria, and based on the prices and stated sizes (12", 14", etc.), have students determine which pizza is the best value.

»»»» At Stephen Mack M.S. in Rockford, IL, students even measured the semicircle size of their bites. "The pizza cost 6 cents a bite," the teacher concluded.


Challenge students to bring in at least 314 cans of food per grade level. If they do, let them hit you with a pie!

»»»» That's how Paris Gibson M.S. in Great Falls, MT was able to collect more than 1,700 cans on one recent Pi Day.

...and many more can be found in the ten categories above!