Growing Deadly Brains®
Growing Deadly Brains® is a First Nations led initiative, developed in collaboration with Queensland Kids Partnership, that honours both cultural knowledge and neuroscience.
The earliest years of life hold extraordinary potential. Brain development in the first eight years lays the foundations for learning, emotional regulation, relationships and lifelong wellbeing - and the people closest to a child are its most powerful architects.
Growing Deadly Brains® centres the cultural strengths, knowledge systems and aspirations of First Nations communities. By embedding neuroscience within culturally safe narratives and practices, the program creates shared language and understanding around healthy brain development - empowering families, caregivers and early years practitioners to support children's social, emotional and cognitive growth from the very beginning.
Through practical, accessible resources and free professional development, Growing Deadly Brains® works to strengthen collaboration across services and systems, so that children experience consistent, nurturing and culturally aligned care no matter where they are supported.
The program is building toward a future where First Nations children grow up healthy, strong and surrounded by practitioners and services that deeply understand and honour both cultural wisdom and brain development. All resources are freely available and for organisations in Queensland there are professional development opportunities at no cost.
Understanding brain development
Explore the key ideas behind Growing Deadly Brains® — grounded in both Indigenous knowledge and neuroscience.
Brain Health
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Brain Health
What is brain health and how does it differ from mental health? Brain health refers to the brain's ability to function at its best — supporting physical, mental and social wellbeing across every stage of life.
Serve & Return
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Serve & Return
Back-and-forth interactions that wire the brain. When a child reaches out — through sounds, expressions or movement — and an adult responds, this builds essential neural connections.
Brain Development
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Brain Development
How brains grow and the role of intergenerational strength. The earliest years of life hold extraordinary potential — and the people closest to a child are its most powerful architects.
Stress & Worries
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Stress & Worries
Positive, tolerable, and toxic stress — and how to buffer. Not all stress is harmful. Understanding the difference helps caregivers protect developing brains and build resilience.
Your Amazing Brain
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Your Amazing Brain
Executive function and how environments grow it. The brain's ability to plan, focus, remember and manage emotions — and how everyday environments shape these skills from the very beginning.
Place Matters
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Place Matters
Country, community, and environment as brain health. Where a child grows up — the safety, culture and relationships around them — shapes how their brain develops and heals.
Neuroplasticity & Healing
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Neuroplasticity & Healing
Brains can change — hope and healing across the lifespan. Indigenous peoples have understood brain-based healing for millennia. Science now confirms what culture has always known.
Emotional Co-Regulation
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Emotional Co-Regulation
How adults help children's nervous systems settle and learn. When a calm, caring adult is present, a child's brain can move from survival mode into a state where learning and connection are possible.
Support for families, educators and organisations
Growing Deadly Brains® is designed for everyone who plays a role in a child's life — from family and community to practitioners and organisations.
For caregivers, parents and families
Growing Deadly Brains® puts brain health knowledge directly into the hands of the people who matter most to children every day. Resources are accessible, relevant and genuinely useful — not clinical or complex.
Created through a First Nations lens, for First Nations families and the people who support them.
Access family resources →For educators, practitioners and community workers
Build your understanding of how children's brains develop and what supports healthy growth — through free professional development delivered by locally based Brain Health Coaches.
Resources are designed to strengthen practice across early childhood, education, health and family wellbeing services.
Explore training and learning →For organisations seeking to embed a Coach
Growing Deadly Brains® offers an embedded coach model for Queensland organisations. A locally based Coach works alongside families, Elders and local services to share culturally strong brain health knowledge close to home.
We partner with Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations, health services, schools, early learning services and government agencies across Queensland.
Get in touch →
Frequently asked questions
Everything you need to know about Growing Deadly Brains®.
Connect with Growing Deadly Brains®
Whether you're a caregiver wanting to understand your child's brain, an educator looking for culturally grounded resources, or an organisation seeking to embed a Growing Deadly Brains® Coach in your community — we'd love to hear from you.
We'd love to hear from you
Fill in the form and our team will be in touch. You can also reach us directly by email.
