Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander curriculum guide

By linking Emerging Minds resources with courses, students will have access to a wide range of content aimed at enhancing their knowledge and skills in how to support infant and child mental health. In using this guide you play a crucial role in fostering a society where the wellbeing of our youngest members is prioritised, ensuring a brighter and healthier future for all.

All Emerging Minds resources listed in this guide have been co-created with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge holders, through a process and approach of inclusive content development, preferencing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledges and ways of knowing, being and doing to work towards pedagogical and epistemological equality.

Download the guide here

Recommended courses:

Online Course

Working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and children: A framework for understanding

Online Course

This course will assist you, as a non-Aboriginal practitioner, to develop the skills and understanding to build genuine partnerships with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, families and communities.
Online Course

Improving the social and emotional wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children

Online Course

This course, produced in partnership with The Healing Foundation, will use a positive, strengths-based, ‘hope-inspired’ focus to support your work with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and families. It also uses a social-political-historical lens to build an understanding of disadvantage, loss of culture, and trauma in the lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and their families.
Online Course

Using Aboriginal cultural knowledge systems to strengthen families’ resilience

Online Course

Build your understanding of key historical considerations, cultural protective factors and the importance of relationships when engaging with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families.
Online Course

Replanting the Birthing Trees: Supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and children in the first 2,000 days

Online Course

This course honours the wisdom of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander parenting practices that have endured for over 60,000 years, and invites practitioners to be curious, notice this ancient knowledge and consider how it can be applied in contemporary practices.

Recommended webinars:

Webinar

Responding to family violence in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families to support children’s social and emotional wellbeing

Child Family Community Australia & Emerging Minds

This webinar, co-produced by Child Family Community Australia (CFCA) and Emerging Minds, explored family violence and child wellbeing in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families, drawing on the expertise of First Nations practitioners.
Webinar

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and the effects of intergenerational trauma

Emerging Minds and Mental Health Professionals' Network (MHPN)

This webinar explores the effects of intergenerational trauma on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and families, outlines current research on the importance of cultural competence and discusses examples of organisational and individual practice to build trust and collaboration.

Recommended podcasts:

Practitioners Podcast

Mental health support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families

Lou Turner and Nancy Jeffrey

Runtime

00:20:18

Released

27/5/22
Practitioners Podcast

Using Elders’ wisdom to guide your practice

Millie Penny and Carol Michie

Runtime

00:35:03

Released

29/5/21
Practitioners Podcast

A story of resilience

Darryl Bingapore

Runtime

00:28:48

Released

23/5/20

Additional material:

Fact sheet

Psychology education needs to reflect the lives of aspiring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students

Belle Selkirk, Dr Joanna Alexi and Professor Pat Dudgeon AM

To support aspiring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students to engage in psychology education in Australia, psychology curricula and teaching and learning programs should reflect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander worldviews and lived experiences.
Video

The whole Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander child

Are you curious about what social and emotional wellbeing means for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children? Emerging Minds has worked with communities across Australia to create 'The whole Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander child'. This video offers a glimpse into the deep connections First Nations Peoples have to Country, culture, spirituality, family and community.
Toolkit

Working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and children toolkit

Emerging Minds

This toolkit draws from the expertise of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander consultants, practitioners, non-Indigenous practitioners and Aboriginal and non-Indigenous organisations. Rather than focusing on why it is difficult to engage with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, their families and communities, it will explore how non-Indigenous practitioners and services can develop genuine connections with First Nations people and communities to create the best conditions for effective service delivery; services based on respect, learning and creating shared understandings.
Resource summary

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander social and emotional wellbeing learning pathway

Emerging Minds

This pathway includes courses for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and non-Indigenous practitioners who work with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, families, and communities. It has been developed with the support and guidance of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, to specifically support non-Indigenous practitioners in mainstream organisations to engage with First Nations families.

Back to all guides

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander curriculum guide

Recommended courses:

Working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and children: A framework for understanding

Improving the social and emotional wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children

Using Aboriginal cultural knowledge systems to strengthen families’ resilience

Replanting the Birthing Trees: Supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and children in the first 2,000 days

Recommended webinars:

Responding to family violence in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families to support children’s social and emotional wellbeing

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and the effects of intergenerational trauma

Recommended podcasts:

Mental health support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families

Using Elders’ wisdom to guide your practice

A story of resilience

Additional material:

Psychology education needs to reflect the lives of aspiring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students

The whole Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander child

Working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and children toolkit

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander social and emotional wellbeing learning pathway

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