Our school has just purchased First in Math for our fourth grade students.  The teachers would like to include this activity as part of their trimester grade.  What would be a realistic goal (number of stickers) for one trimester?  There will be a minimum of time spent with the program at school but all students have internet access.  Thank you.

Hi!  We have been using FIM for years now and have had a lot of success.  The Winners Circle ( a more recent addition- thank you! thank you!) lists anyone who has gotten 100 points + each week so it helps with tracking.  I teach 5-7 and I ask for them to aim to be on the Winners Circle each week.  For my better students this is not a problem.  You may need to adjust the requirements for the slower ones; for holidays, for busy weeks, and at  the beginning of the game it is easier to get points but once the 'easy' stuff is done, they tend to slow down.  It is mostly a homework grade for us and I have had parents complain if I set the requirements too high.  I have found that the 100 points/winners circle is a good starting point and I tell my kids that is C work  so if they want a better homework grade they need to show me they are using the program faithfully.  Right now most of my students have over 2000 points, many getting well over the 100 expected each week, but the numbers are dropping as the work gets harder.  Good luck.  Hope this helps.  The Winners Circle does help grading, even if it is just a plus in the grade book each week.