Pi Week with Grade Four Students at River West Park School

The grade four students at River West Park School had a fun and tasty exploration of mathematics while celebrating Pi Day over the last couple weeks! 🥧✨

The class learned about π (pi) and tested their memory skills in a friendly Pi Recitation Competition. The rules were:
 • Say digits aloud, one at a time. No singing, chanting, or rhyming.
 • Say “zero” for 0. Do not say “oh.”
 • Say 2, 3 separately; never say 23 together.
 • Never repeat the previous digit, even to regain momentum.
 • Any mistake = start over from the beginning.

The results of the competition were:

14, 21, 26, 37, 47, 47, 49, 51, 52, 52, 53, 55, 57, 57, 68, 89, 91, 109, 111, 115, 123, 137, 219.

The top score of 219 digits broke last year’s record and even surpassed a record set years ago when I ran this competition in my Grade Eight math class. After the official competition, several students wanted to share their recitations, so I recorded a few — and in these videos all of them went further than their number listed above!

Students measured and calculated the area and circumference of a 30-inch pizza generously donated by Imran Fahim (co-owner) Santa Lucia Corydon. They then used division and a calculator to determine the area each student would receive, reinforcing their understanding of area in a practical, hands-on way. I also baked an apple pie bar for the class, and students applied the same concept — calculating the area and dividing it by the number of students to determine how much each would receive.

Using the “Find My Pi Day” website, students discovered whose birthday date appeared closest to the start of π (L.K.) and whose was furthest (J.B.C.). They completed a Pi activity booklet filled with fun challenges and pi-themed jokes, took a class photo holding digits of π in a circle, and one student asked me to capture a special photo under the digital clock at exactly 3:14 15 secs! The class was completely immersed in everything pi.

A huge thank-you to Santa Lucia Corydon for their generous donation that was delivered today (March 18th) — it made Pi Day both educational and unforgettable! 🎉🍕

Incredibly proud of the students for all they learned and achieved in math during this section.