Union Curriculum Specialist Creates Fun Math Videos For Students

You might ask any student of any age what their favorite class in school is and chances are pretty good the answer won't be math, unless you're Bill Murphy.

Murphy is a curriculum specialist at Union Public Schools, and he's created a video to help his students understand pi. Numerically known as 3.14, pi's used, among other things, to find the circumference of a circle.

"It's just about helping the kids relate math to something they already enjoy," Murphy said.

He's been making videos and using music for years; other topics include multiplying and dividing fractions, graphing equations and, of course, pi.

Pi is significant this year because of the numbers, 31415.

"So in the geeky, nerd world that I love 3-14-15 line up perfectly," Murphy said.

Even better, the next five numerals in the number pi are 92653, so on 3-14-15 at 9:26:53 a.m., that's really a big pi deal, because those numbers won't line up like that for another 100 years.

3/10/2015 Related Story: Union School District Makes Video For 'Pi Day'

It's not just playing around with numbers, there's a purpose to it.

"The ultimate objective is to give the kids another foot in the door with math," Murphy said.

Statistically it's too early to tell if it's working, except to say that the kids will sing the lyrics back to him when they see him at school.

Union, he said, has been very supportive. His videos feature students, other teachers, administrators and even the Union Superintend, Dr. Kirt Hartzler.

As a self-described math geek, March 14 of 2015 (31415) is his favorite holiday, after that May the 4th.

More videos may be on the way and you can find his others on YouTube.