At SCS we are excited to join schools across the country in celebrating Pi Day, which falls on March 14th each year. Pi, or the Greek letter π, is the mathematical designation given to the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter. Although π is an infinite number, it can be approximated as 3.1415; thus, while every year has a “Pi Day” on 3/14, only once every century can we celebrate a “Super” Pi Day on 3/14/15. Serendipitously, March 14th is also Albert Einstein’s birthday, which makes this Saturday a mathematical “holiday” all the more!
For Super Pi Day, we’re going all-out as part of our emphasis on STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) concepts at SCS. Our plans include many fun events at the elementary and secondary levels, including special math lessons and challenges, a Pi recitation competition, pie served in the cafeteria, and a special dress-down day. In addition to these events, elementary and secondary chapels this week will focus on God’s orderly, elegant, and perfect design in math, as He created all things (Colossians 1:16), never changes (Hebrews 13:8), and holds all things together (Colossians 1:17).
There are many ways you can take some time as a family on Saturday – which is the actual day on which Super Pi Day falls this year – to keep the excitement going. Some ideas are baking pies together, conducting a Pi Day scavenger hunt (to find all the circles in a room of the house), traveling 3.14 miles (by walking, running, biking, or driving), reciting Pi in as many digits as possible with one breath, or simply pausing for a minute on 3/14/15 at 9:26 (as Pi to the 7th digit is 3.1415926). Having fun as a family is one of the best ways to instill a love of math and an excitement for learning in our kids.
