Thirty-four Pi Day words on unique printable cards, from circumference, diameter and radius to 3.14159, Archimedes and the pies, for March 14 in grades 3 to 8.
34 items · a 5 × 5 card with a free space needs 24 or more. More items make the cards differ.For review bingo, type answer | clue (“56 | 7 × 8”): the card shows the answer, the caller reads the clue. Two columns pasted from a spreadsheet work too. Start a line with an emoji (“🐶 dog”) for a picture square.
Showing 4 of 31 pages. (Print always prints every page.)
To save a PDF, choose Print, then “Save as PDF” as the printer. Only the sheets print.
30 different cards. No two are the same. The card number and set number on every card let the caller check a winner (press C while calling).
About this set
Pi Day is March 14, because the date written as 3/14 matches the first digits of pi, 3.14. Pi is the number you get by dividing any circle’s circumference by its diameter, and it is about 3.14159. Its digits never end or repeat, which makes it an irrational number. This set puts the math on the card (pi, circle, circumference, diameter, radius, ratio, constant, area, irrational number, fraction, digits, 3.14, 3.14159), the people (Archimedes, who worked out how to estimate it, and Albert Einstein, who was born on March 14, 1879) and the party (pie, pizza pie, apple pie, crust, slice), so a class can mix real geometry with the fun of the day.
Grades: 3rd to 8th grade. Best in: March.
The words on the cards
Pi · 3.14 · Pi symbol · March 14 · Circle · Circumference · Diameter · Radius · Ratio · Irrational number · Constant · Greek letter · Archimedes · Albert Einstein · Pie · Pizza pie · Apple pie · Pumpkin pie · Cherry pie · Crust · Slice · Fraction · Circle graph · Compass · Geometry · Calculator · Wheel · 3.14159 · Area · Mathematician · Round · Sphere · Digits · Equal slices
How to play, and five ideas
Find pi yourself: when “circumference” or “diameter” is called, pairs measure a round object with string and a ruler and divide the first by the second, then compare answers to 3.14.
Digit chain: when “digits” is called, the class takes turns saying the next digit of 3.14159265 around the circle.
Pie fractions: when “slice” or “fraction” is called, a student shows what one-eighth of a drawn pie looks like and names it.
Define before you cover: students must say what circumference, radius or ratio means in their own words before they mark the square.
Pi Day party: end with the winner choosing which pie (or pizza) the class draws on the board, and cut it into equal slices.
Because 3/14 in month-and-day order looks like 3.14, the first digits of pi. The first big Pi Day celebration was held at the Exploratorium science museum in San Francisco in 1988.
Is pi exactly 3.14?
No. 3.14 and the fraction 22/7 are close approximations. Pi’s digits go on forever without repeating, so no decimal or fraction equals it exactly. That is the idea behind “irrational number” on the cards.
Can I change the words?
Yes. The 34 words are in the box above the cards. Delete, add or edit any line and the cards are rebuilt at once. Nothing is saved on our servers.
How do I call the game?
Press “Call the game”. Each press of the space bar tumbles the ball cage and pops out the next item in very large type, with the list of items already called beside it. Press C and type a card number to check a winner, P to change the win pattern, V to have each call read aloud, and F to fill the projector.
How do I save the cards as a PDF?
Press Print and choose “Save as PDF” as the printer. Each page can also be saved as a PNG picture from under its preview.
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