If you know a great high-school science or math teacher -- someone who's been in the public school classroom for at least five years, and is teaching at least four periods a day -- the Sloan Foundation and the Fund for the City of New York want to hear from you.

This year marks the inauguration of the Sloan Awards for Excellence in Teaching Science and Mathematics, which will recognize seven of the city's best with a $5,000 cash award to the winning teachers, and $2500 each to their departments. Of the seven awards, two have been set aside for teachers in high schools specializing in science and math.

The good news: The focus is on more than test scores, although student achievement is a factor. They're looking for innovation, creativity, strong teaching styles, extracurriculars, and the teacher's ability to motivate interest and encourage kids to explore careers in science and math.

Did your child's trig teacher make math sing? Did her robotics coach urge her to consider engineering? Or did a living-environment lab inspire new passions in your budding environmentalist? Now's the time to do more than simply say "thank you." Nominations are open through the month of November; visit the Fund's webite for details -- and good luck (and heartfelt thanks) to the teachers who cajole, inspire, motivate, challenge, encourage and nurture our children.