Education Technology

Approximating Pi -- Archimedes method

Author
Subject Area
Math: Geometry: Circles
Math: Geometry: Quadrilaterals and Polygons
Math: Geometry: Reasoning
Level
9-12
Activity Time
45 Minutes
TI Calculator
TI-Nspire™
TI-Nspire™ CAS
Resource Types
Lessons

Approximating Pi -- Archimedes method

Activity Overview

Students will be assigned different regular polygons to construct. They will then construct a circumscribed circle, measure diameter, circumference and perimeter. The measurements will be placed into a spreadsheet and the ratios of circumference/diameter and perimeter/diameter will be calculated.

Before the Activity

Review the instuctions in the attached document.

During the Activity



Manual data captures will populate the spreadsheet.

After the Activity



Students will compare their data findings, discuss whose perimeter/diameter is closest to pi and why.

A solution file is provided for teachers to see what to expect from students.

icon-download-lm
Download Files
Author
Subject Area
Math: Geometry: Circles
Math: Geometry: Quadrilaterals and Polygons
Math: Geometry: Reasoning
Level
9-12
Activity Time
45 Minutes
TI Calculator
TI-Nspire™
TI-Nspire™ CAS
Resource Types
Lessons
iPad is a trademark of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries.
Vernier EasyData,Vernier EasyLink and Vernier EasyTemp are registered trademarks of Vernier Science Education.