#16 Math Minute Discovering Pi

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Circles are EVERYWHERE, and wherever there are circles, there’s PI!

How can I spend my Math Minutes this week?

  • Explore the wonders of Pi on @Wonderopolis: http://wonderopolis.org/wonder/what-is-pi/  Post something new you learned in the comments below.  Make sure when leaving a comment you only put your first name, your grade, and school (i.e. Trevor, 4, Sunset).
  • Find circles in your environment and snap some pictures.  Make a Pic Collage (or use another app of your choice) and send it to the EY coordinator at your building.  Take it a step further and snap the picture with a ruler going though the center (measuring the diameter of the circle).  Calculate the circumference of the circle by taking pi times diameter.  C = πd
  • See how close you can get to pi by following the steps below:

Step 1:  Measure the diameter of a circle.  I used the top of my QT cup in the picture below. I measured the diameter as 11.5 cm.

pi3

Step 2:  Measure the outside of the circle (circumference) with a string (I used a piece of making tape folded in half because I didn’t have a string handy).

IMG_4076     IMG_4077

Step 3:  Measure the string.  I measured the circumference of my QT lid as 36.5 cm.

IMG_4078

Step 4:  Divide the circumference by the diameter (36.5 divided by 11.5).  I got 3.17391304.  Not too bad!

IMG_4079

Send your pi calculations to the EY coordinator at your building.

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