pi day

Pi Math in Palo Alto

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My favorite math-related day of the year is in two days! Pi day is celebrated every year on March 14 in Palo Alto and elsewhere. Now, for those kids who do not know what pi is, I will quickly tell you. Pi is not the same as the delicious dessert pie. Pi, often written as the Greek letter ?, is the ratio between a circle’s circumference to it’s diameter. Pi can be approximated as 22/7, but it actually goes on forever: it starts 3.14159265358979… Since 3, 1, and 4 are pi’s first digits, we celebrate pi day on March 14 (3/14).

Pi math tutoring Palo Alto

Image from freedigitalphotos.net

Math Problems for Palo Alto Kids Using Pi

 

  1. To help your Palo Alto child understand pi better, have them approximate pi themselves. Here are the steps to approximate pi.
    Step 1: Find a circular object, like a plate. Then, measure the circumference (the edge of the plate) by wrapping a string around it and measuring the amount of string you used.
    Step 2: Measure the diameter of the circular object
    Step 3: Make a ratio of the circumference of the plate to it’s diameter. Plug that into a calculator, and your child should get a number very close to 3.14!
  2. You walk around a circular track that has a radius of 18 feet. What is the circumference of the track? (Remember, circumference is found using the equation 2 * pi * radius)
  3. You want to find the volume of a cup. If your favorite cup has a radius of 2 inches and is 5 inches tall, how much cubic inches of water can fill the cup? (Remember, volume for a cylinder is pi * radius^2 * height)

A Fun Pi Tradition

A way to make your child LOVE pi day is by making a yummy pie with them. Before letting them taste the delicious pie, make them calculate the circumference and area of the pie using pi! You can also take your child to a restaurant in Palo Alto, like the Prolific Oven on Waverly Street, that serves pies and have them calculate the circumference and area of their pies using pi as well!

For more problems and information about math in and book recommendations, check out Palo Alto – Menlo Park Mathnasium’s website.

Pi Day at Mathnasium

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Palo Alto – Menlo Park Mathnasium celebrates Pi Day every year by teaching the children about the number pi, showing them how to use it, and then letting the kids play fun, pie related math problems and games! If your child is shaky on the concept of pi, we strongly recommend for them to go to Mathnasium on Pi Day! We can teach your child about pi any day they come to Mathnasium, but learning about it on Pi Day is more special because we have fun, hands on activities planned that will lock the idea of pi in their minds.

Pi Day Activities

  • Other than celebrating Pi Day at Mathnasium, there are some great books that you can read to your child that also teach about the concept of pi in a fun way. One is called Sir Cumference and the First Round Table by Cindy Neuschwander. This is a very funny and engaging book that your child will LOVE. Ms. Neuschwander has lots of other books about Sir Cumference’s adventures that involve pi.
  • Bake a pi(e) with your child! Baking is a great way to practice math skills and since it’s pi day, feel free to ask your child questions involving pi (ask them about circumference, area, etc)!

piday1

Pi Related Math Problems

Here are examples of math problems we will be asking the kids at Mathnasium on Pi Day!

  1. Have the child measure the diameter and circumference of a circle. Then ask them to calculate pi (circumference/diameter)
  2. Your plate has a radius of 4 inches. You want to fit as much food as possible on your plate. What is the area of the amount of food you can fit on your plate?
  3. Your hamburger has a radius of 3 inches. What is the area of your hamburger? What is the circumference of your hamburger?

We hope to see your at Mathnasium on Pi Day! We will be having fun pi related activities. We also hope to see your  child this summer. For more information about Mathnasium of Palo Alto-Menlo Park and other unique word problems, visit our website at  http://www.mathnasium.com/paloalto-menlopark

The History of Pi Day at Mathnasium

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Pi is a well known number, but not many people know where it came from. On Pi Day at Mathnasium, we will not only be teaching your child about how we use pi in math, but also about its history.

Pi Day History

A long, long time ago, the Babylonians tried to figure out the area of circle. They thought that the area could be calculated by taking 3 times the square of the circle’s radius. Thus, their calculation for pi was 3.125. The ancient Egyptians disagreed with this equation and came up with their own. Their calculation for pi followed this equation:       (8  * diameter / 9)²  . Their approximation for pi was 3.1605.

The first, most logical approximation of pi came from Archimedes. He approximated the area of a circle by inscribing the circle in a regular polygon. He then increased the number of sides in the polygon to 96. By increasing the number of sides, the polygon looked more and more like a circle, thus making his answer the most precise. Here is a picture that shows what Archimedes did:

piday Archimedes approach led him to the value of pi we use now, which is: 3.14159…

Mathnasium and Pi Day

Here are examples of math problems we will be teaching your child to do on Pi Day at Mathnasium.

  1. A pie has a radius of 4 inches. What is the area of the pie? What is the circumference of the pie?
  2. Lorenzo walked around a circular path that had a diameter of 90 feet. How many feet did he walk?
  3. If a pizza’s circumference is 8.92 feet, what is the radius of the pizza?

We hope to see your at Mathnasium on Pi Day! We will be having fun pi related activities. We also hope to see your  child this summer. For more information about Mathnasium of Palo Alto-Menlo Park and other unique word problems, visit our website at  http://www.mathnasium.com/paloalto-menlopark

Pi Day at Mathnasium

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Pi is a very important number that is used throughout all math classes as well as throughout one’s life. This is why it is very important for Mathnasium to celebrate Pi Day. Last year, Pi Day at Mathnasium involved learning about pi, doing pi related math problems, eating pie, and throwing pie’s at instructor’s faces! This year, we will be following last year’s tradition! We have a great day of fun activities planned out for the children. Here is a sneak peak of problems similar to the one’s were going to be solving on pi day.

Pi Day Math Problems

Pi day

  1. You ordered pizza from your favorite pizza restaurant. The pizza has a radius of 6 inches. What is the circumference of the pizza? What is the area of the pizza?
  2. Your ice cream cone has a radius of 2 inches and a height of 5 inches. What is the volume of your ice cream cone? (Volume = 1/3 * π * r²)
  3. An apple pi(e) has a radius of 4 inches. What is the circumference of the pizza? If 8 people what a slice of pie, what is the circumference of each person’s piece (only including the outer edge).

We have an endless list of problems to do on pi day, so make sure to take your child to Mathnasium so that they can learn about Pi Day as well as celebrate at Mathnasium!

We hope to see your at Mathnasium on Pi Day! We will be having fun pi related activities. We also hope to see your  child this summer. For more information about Mathnasium of Palo Alto-Menlo Park and other unique word problems, visit our website at  http://www.mathnasium.com/paloalto-menlopark