The only day of the celebration of being irrational and eating dessert is mandatory on March 14th, otherwise known as Pi day! Larry Shaw who was a media specialist was the person that first celebrated the mathematical constant, at the Exploratorium Science Museum in San Francisco! Honoring the constant, they would march around in circular spaces all while eating a mixture of fruit pies. This day was finally nationalized by the US House of Representatives in 2009.
However, forget about the kitchen, it’s all about numbers, constants, and how infinite they can be! Pi’s decimals go on forever without ever creating a pattern! It’s what’s driven mathematicians to be able to calculate trillions of digits for this number. The never-ending sequence is the hidden engine behind many things, even currently! It shows that in an area of education where there can be confusion and chaos, Pi is there to give us a perfect and circular order. Only for the ones who are able to look past the crust!
Looking past the excuse to eat dessert during school, Pi day shows us how math isn’t just hours of random numbers or word problems; it shows us how math is involved with many things such as designing buildings or bridges all the way to exploring outer space. Honestly, if a slice of apple pie came on the side of a lesson about infinite decimals, most students would start seeing and agreeing that math had suddenly become more versatile.
Different schools celebrate this national holiday with activities like pie-eating contests, math games, or memorizing digits of Pi. Things that actually help students see math less tedious.There are even some people that have memorized hundreds to thousands of Pi’s digits, impressive but slightly scary and definitely not very useful ordering lunch! Still, the day is a reminder towards everyone how math can be creative, competitive, and occasionally involve a delicious dessert!
Ultimately, this day shows how math doesn’t have to always be or make you feel stressful or serious. Celebrating Pi day with games, a free-day, and plenty of pie! Students get to see and experience how learning can be fun and even tasty!