Pi Day (or should say "Pre" Pi Day, since we had to celebrate two days early) was a HUGE success at The Peck Place School.
Students and staff alike joined together to "Celebrate the Circle."
Thanks to the tremendous flexibility and generosity of Mr. Brady (our incredible Physical Education teacher) we were able to turn the gym into a giant Pie complete with slices of activities. Each grade level was invited to spend an hour participating in the Pi Day activities that connected Pi and the circle to multiple disciplines.
Our older students, Grades 3-6, started their day with some Pi Info.
Got 3.14 minutes, take a look: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Mz7xU3zZvk
Our Stations (or Pie Slices):
Station: 3.14
All of our students in grades 1-6 had the opportunity to discover Pi by comparing the circumference to the diameter of various circles (using various cylinders).
Station 3.141
And since we love to make connections, these same students were asked to build a circle PIE using fractional pieces of their favorite flavors.
Station 3.1415
We needed to have some circle art as part of our day. Students in Grades 1-2 watched the Book, The Dot and worked to create a Kandinsky Inspired Circle Quilt.
Students in Grades 3-6 expanded their knowledge of pointillism and created a Circle of Circle Dots. We were impressed with the Pi and Pie themed ones.
Station 3.14159
Our 3rd-6th graders tried their hands at making beaded Pi-Day Bracelets to color code the first thirteen digits of Pi.
Our 1-2 graders made Pasta Pi Necklaces to color code those same thirteen digits. This was only possible thanks to our 5-6 grade student volunteers who gave up their lunch and recess in order to assist our primary students.
Station 3.141592
Having "discovered" Pi, built Pi, created Fraction Pie Circles, and designed Circle Art, it was now time to HEAR Pi. To help students understand that Pi never ends and never settles into a permanent repeating pattern (to date) students in Grades 3-6 had a chance to play Pi (or part of it).
After watching a brief video (which was edited down), students tried their hands at playing Pi.
What Pi Sounds Like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOQb_mtkEEE
Our younger students heard a little of the music of Pi, but spent their station time learning "What Makes a Circle a Circle." Guided by our 5th grade volunteers, our primary students held onto rope that was attached to our Center Guide. They discovered that they all had to be an equal distance from the center.
After building the circle and talking about its circumference, they then had a little down time which consisted of finding circles.
That's not all. Knowing that keeping 345+ students excited, enthused, and on task is no easy feat, we also had several Finished Pi Stations at the ready. If a student completed an activity early, they were welcome to:
Pi-efy their name
Brainstorm words with Pi
Memorize the digits of Pi
Read and explore the Greek Alphabet
Graph the Digits of Pi (and add to the Pi Chain)
to name a few...
And now for some Pi Day Candids:
I truly enjoyed Pi Day. The energy and enthusiasm was electrifying!
But this day would not have been possible without the help, flexibility, and support of others. Many thanks to ALL of The Passionate Peck Place Teachers, our Super Student Volunteers, our Hard-working Interns, Mrs. Blair (our Amazing Parent Volunteer), our Dedicated Peck Place Custodial Staff, our Supportive District Technology Department, our Fabulous Math Aides, and to our Incredible Peck Place Principal, Mr. Carbone!
If your child did not tell you about Pi Day, be sure to ask!
