"That was the first time in 12 years that I ever offered extra credit," said Matt Zehner, social sciences teacher at Branham High School.

Zehner has a reputation around the school for his vocal opposition to end-of-semester extra credit, saying it does not reflect the work done by students throughout the semester in the classroom. Still, last year, as Branham's supply and budget for copy paper was running low, the situation got to be so bad, he offered all his students an opportunity to earn a few points for bringing in a ream of copy paper.

He received more than 100 packages.

"It solved an immediate need," he said.

Boxes of facial tissue wipe up as the clear winner as the most-requested supply.

"It's mostly Kleenex, because people are always getting sick," said Kathryn Champlin, eighth grader at Bret Harte Middle School.

Cody Swick, world history teacher at Pioneer High School, says people don't realize how much facial tissue kids go through in a school year. Preparing for the inevitable sniffles of the season, Swick solicited early for tissue, offering five points for every box of tissue. He limited the donations to two boxes per student and gave kids one day to cough up the goods.

He now has a shelfful of tissue and his students received a number of points equivalent to one homework assignment, which is motivation enough for some students.

Pioneer sophomores Laura Ortiz and Alexis Loera both say they haven't brought in any supplies, but both agree they would do so not out of the spirit of giving, but to get extra points.

Not all students want to earn their grades that way.

"I don't think it's the right way to get points," said Justine Kirkeidi, Pioneer 10th- grader.

Teachers say the points given to students are so small that it would be rare to see those extra-credit points raise an overall grade.

"The perception is they're improving their grades," Zehner said. "But the points are really negligible."

Negligible or not, some believe trading points for products amounts to buying a grade and argue that it is unfair to students whose families may not be able to afford to pay for anything extra.

"It is kind of like selling education to the kids who can afford it," said Nicole Morello, world history teacher at Leland. "It's not something we want to do. We would love to not have to do it."

It's the kind of practice that makes some parents angry.

"You need to be sensitive to the fact that not everyone can participate," said parent Debra Ullman. "I see it as a form of bribery."

Dartmouth Middle School Principal Carole Carlson shares Ullman's concerns about fairness to all students from all economic levels. She laid down the law at her school, telling her teachers she does not want them giving out grade points for supplies. Ullman worries that students will be rewarded, or not, based on the financial position of the parents.

"Why make [a grade] tied to money?" asks Brian Jesse, integrated science teacher at Leland. "I think it's unethical. I think a grade should depend on what they are learning, not on buying points."

Teachers desperate and frustrated with budget shortfalls say they are seeking creative alternatives to forking out cash out of their own pockets for items such as tissue and pens.

"I do not exchange extra-credit points for classroom supplies," said Vicki Nosanov-Goldman, a teacher at Bret Harte. "I do exchange preferred activity time for classroom supplies."

Preferred activity time, she said, can include things like classroom parties or cooking experiences in her home economics classroom.

With his 100 reams of paper, Zehner improvised a barter system.

"I use it to trade with other teachers for things like trash liners," he said. "Then I take the trash liners over to a teacher who has coffee and I trade for that."