The incoming 7th grade class has a choice of FRENCH or SPANISH as a language elective. There are 3 times as many Spanish classes as French classes (or 3 to 1). How many students can choose Spanish if there are 850 students? Round to the nearest whole number.(1 point)
Since there are three times as many Spanish classes as French classes, we can set up the following equation to represent the total number of language classes: x + 3x = 850,
where x represents the number of French classes.
Combining like terms, we get 4x = 850.
Dividing both sides by 4, we solve for x: x = 212.5.
Since we cannot have a fraction of a class, we round x down to the nearest whole number.
Thus, the number of French classes is 212.
Since there are three times as many Spanish classes as French classes, there are 3 * 212 = <<3*212=636>>636 Spanish classes.
Therefore, 636 students can choose Spanish, rounding to the nearest whole number. Answer: \boxed{636}.