The number Pi, celebrated on March 14th annually inspired its own language known as “Pilish”. Pilish is a form of writing that is both challenging and fun. Learn about pilish and write a piem today!
What is Pi?
Pi, or π, is the ratio of the circumference of a circle to the diameter. In case you need a refresher, the circumference of a circle is the distance all the way around and the diameter of a circle is the distance across the middle.
Pi begins 3.1415 and mathematicians have spent thousands of years studying this irrational number. Trillions of digits of Pi have been identified so far!
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What is Pilish?
Pilish is an entire language based on Pi. We decided to give it a try and write our own Piems, or poems based on Pi!
In Pilish, the length of the words match the numbers as written in the sequence of digits in Pi. For example, the first word has three letters, the second has one letter, the third has four letters, and so on.
What are the Rules of Pilish?
According to Software Engineer, Michael Keith, the author of several short stories as well as an entire novel written in Pilish, the rules to writing in this style are as follows.
In Basic Pilish, each word of n letters represents:
- The digit of n if n<10
- The digit 0 if n=10.
For the purpose of this activity, we will stick to Basic rules noted above.
Mike Keith shares more about the rules of Writing in Pilish. You can also check out his Pilish book, Not a Wake, too!
A Piem about Pie
We love to eat pie for Pi Day, so it’s only fair to write a piem about pie!
Pie (3), a (1) dish (4)
I (1) adore (5) immensely (9)
Is (2) mainly (6) eaten (5)
for (3) treat (5) intently (8)
Write a Piem
Print the piem worksheet. Use the first 48 digits of Pi to write a Piem. Each word must have the same amount of letters as the digit of Pi in the box shown above.
The challenge is to try to write a coherent piem using as many digits of Pi as possible. We’ve included 47 digits on our worksheet!
Share your piem with us on social media on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram! You can also send an email to Toni@ourfamilycode.com! We would love to see your piems!
Frequently Asked Questions about Pi
3.1415926535 8979323846 2643383279 5028841971 6939937510 5820974944 5923078164 0628620899 8628034825 3421170679
Pi is the ratio of the circumference of any circle to the diameter of that circle. The approximate value of Pi is 3.14.
Archimedes of Syracuse was the first person to calculate Pi.
Pi is an irrational number and has no final digit.
Books for Pi Day
Check out these books to celebrate Pi Day!
Find more Pi Day Activities
Check out these great STEAM Pi Day activities for kids that pair math with technology, art, engineering, and science!
First 100 Digits of Pi Color Wheel Activity
Learn the first 100 digits of Pi with this color wheel activity that helps kids to visualize numbers of Pi in the first 100 digits and learn about color wheels!
Pi Necklace Coding Unplugged Coding Activity
We love to pair math and technology to create fun art! This Pi Necklace coding activity is the perfect combination of math, binary, and hexadecimal coding for upper elementary and middle school students. It’s also an engaging Pi Day activity!
Pi Mosaic Color Coding
We love math and art activities! We work with pixel puzzles and mosaic squares quite a bit in our house and decided to use turn a skyline activity into a color coding mosaic pi cityscape activity that works on basic programming skills while introducing Pi.
Finding Pi with Math Sun Catchers
The goal of the Finding Pi with Math Sun Catchers activity is to explore the number Pi and prove that it is a mathematical constant by making math sun catchers out of fuse beads for a fun math + art STEAM activity! This is a great activity for upper elementary and middle school kids.
Circle Algorithm Art Unplugged Coding Activity
This circle algorithm art activity introduces basic coding skills by giving kids a set of rules and steps to follow to create unique designs in each circle! An algorithm is a set of specific steps that you can follow to solve a problem. One way to teach your children about algorithms and unplugged coding is to have them create algorithm art drawings.
Learn about Circles with Watercolor Compass Art
We love any reason to geek out and Pi Day is one of our favorite days to enjoy some math and art activities! From coding Pi necklaces to creating Pi mosaic cityscapes, we try to do a range of projects in our house so that each of our kids can geek out with us! This watercolor compass art activity is perfect for a wide range of ages and learning levels
How to Code a Circle with JavaScript
This math + art + technology activity is designed to show how JavaScript programs can be used to make drawings and introduce kids to the coordinate system used.
Meet Toni, the Maker Mom behind Our Family Code
Hey there, I’m Toni! I’m a software engineer and Maker Mom that finds my joy in unleashing my children’s curiosity by exploring STEAM concepts with my fantastic five!
When I’m not chasing toddlers or raising tweens, you can find me tearing things up and putting them back together over here at Our Family Code.
I am the owner and content creator of multiple educational websites designed to increase access to STEAM & STEM education with a focus on teaching computer science and coding to kids of all ages!
You can also find out more about me by visiting ToniGardner.com!
