m=the slope of the line, in this case, the slope is equal to "18"; (18 cm/ year). b=the initial heigth, in this case, the initial heigth is equal to "5" (5 cm).
Mr. Ramirez can use many different group sizes, but the largest group size possible is 8. This results in 16/8=2 sixth-grade groups and 24/8=3 seventh-grade groups.