Join NAGC’s New Early Childhood Working Group
Overview
The NAGC Early Childhood Working Group is forming, and we are excited to invite passionate professionals, caregivers, and advocates to join us in shaping the future of early childhood gifted education and talent development!
We welcome individuals with diverse backgrounds, roles, and experiences to apply. Whether your expertise is in early childhood education, gifted education, research, family engagement, or advocacy, your voice and contributions are vital to this work.
This new working group will build on the recommendations of the NAGC Early Childhood Task Force and help advance NAGC’s strategic goal of serving as a Center of Expertise. Through this initiative, we will synthesize and share knowledge, resources, and best practices to better support young gifted learners and their families.
Purpose of the Working Group
The purpose of this group is to expand NAGC’s leadership, expertise, and resource availability in supporting advanced development and talent in the early childhood years.
The focus of the work could include, but is not limited to:
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Organizational Papers – Reviewing and revising the NAGC Position Statement on Early Childhood, collaborating with the Professional Standards Committee to develop supplements to the PreK-12 Programming Standards, and conceptualizing new organizational papers.
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Professional Learning Plan – Creating and launching professional learning opportunities such as webinars, and integrating early childhood emphases into events like the Teachers Summit and LEAP resources.
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Resources – Collecting and curating current early childhood resources, identifying gaps, and outlining plans for new resources such as blogs, toolkits, or themed issues of Teaching for High Potential or Parenting for High Potential.
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Outreach and Partnerships – Building connections both inside and outside NAGC to strengthen networks, collaborating with other groups, and engaging early childhood experts beyond the gifted field to expand awareness and impact.
Key Content Areas
Across these focus areas, the group’s work may address several critical topics in early childhood gifted education:
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Identification – Critically examining systems, tools, resources, and practices for identifying young advanced learners.
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Curricular and Instructional Resources – Creating strategies and recommendations to guide effective teaching and learning in early childhood settings.
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Supportive and Culturally Responsive Environments – Promoting learning environments where young gifted learners can thrive.
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Family and Community Collaboration – Partnering with families and communities to support talent development.
Expectations and Time Commitment
The Early Childhood Working Group will include 12–16 members representing varied roles and constituencies within NAGC, including a liaison to the Board of Directors.
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The group will meet virtually several times throughout the year, with an optional in-person meeting at the NAGC Annual Convention.
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Members are expected to:
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Engage actively in meetings and discussions.
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Dedicate time outside of meetings to tasks such as research, writing, and reviewing materials.
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Collaborate with others to advance the group’s goals and initiatives.
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Support regular reporting and updates to the NAGC Board of Directors.
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The initial timeline for the group will run from Fall 2025 through Fall 2026, with progress reviewed to determine future needs and potential extensions.
Volunteer Application
If you are ready to help shape the future of early childhood gifted education, please review and complete the application form attached here. Please note, you must be signed in to your NAGC account to apply.
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Application Deadline: October 7, 2025
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Notification of Selected Members: October 24, 2025
Jennifer Williams & Alicia Schroeder-Schock
Co-Chairs, NAGC Early Childhood Working Group
