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Ice cube tray with bus soap cubes surrounded by green leaves

Deadly Labs

Deadly Labs builds on the vision of DeadlyScience, preserving and promoting the science and technical knowledge of the First Scientists of this land. This program empowers young Indigenous learners by offering culturally relevant STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education through hands-on experiment kits.


Each kit is developed in collaboration with Indigenous communities and Elders, ensuring cultural relevance and community input. The kits often include curriculum-aligned lesson plans, learner activity worksheets, and instructional videos. Expert scientists from the relevant disciplines guide the kit development, ensuring the content is both accurate and engaging. Where appropriate, Indigenous knowledge is integrated to deepen engagement with STEM subjects.


Deadly Labs aims to spark curiosity and foster long-term interest in STEM fields among Indigenous learners. The program provides a pathway for the next generation of scientists, engineers, technologists, and mathematicians. These kits are tailored for students from Foundation to Year 10, particularly for those in lower-literacy groups or less resourced communities.


By giving learners access to these experiment kits, DeadlyScience inspires confidence and shows Indigenous students that STEM is a field they can thrive in — because STEM is for everyone.

Deadly Lab Kits

Bush Soaps

The Deadly Labs Bush Soapmaking Guide is a hands-on, curriculum-aligned resource designed for educators teaching Foundation to Year 6 students, with flexibility to adapt for older learners. Rooted in First Nations knowledge and community-led science, this guide introduces students to fundamental chemistry concepts and the scientific process of soapmaking.

Developed by the Robinson River Community on Garawa Country in the Northern Territory, this resource explores the history and importance of hygiene through a First Nations lens. Students learn about personal hygiene practices, such as regular handwashing, and their role in preventing the spread of infections and disease.

Through discussion, investigation, and simple scientific testing, students gain an understanding of chemical processes—culminating in the hands-on experience of making bush soap using natural ingredients and cultural knowledge passed down over generations.

The Deadly Labs Bush Soapmaking Guide & Kit is funded by the Merck Group through the Merck Community Engagement Localised Partnership Program, since 2021.

Watch our Bush Soap video

Deadly Weather

Deadly Weather is a hands-on, place-based learning kit that supports Year 5–8 learners to understand weather and seasons through First Nations knowledge of Country and smart weather technology. Aligned with the Australian Curriculum, the kit centres observation of local environments, recognising that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples have long used clouds, winds, plants and animals to read seasonal change.

The Deadly Labs kit focuses on two-way learning by integrating Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander seasonal knowledge with meteorological science. It supports the documentation of local seasonal indicators and weather patterns, in collaboration with Cultural Knowledge Holders when available. The kit promotes hands-on STEM learning through the use of analogue weather tools and digital smart weather stations, encouraging inquiry-based investigations into temperature, rainfall, wind, and clouds. A flexible 5-lesson unit is included, designed for easy classroom delivery. Through this kit, learners will develop the ability to explain weather and seasonal changes from both scientific and cultural perspectives, improve weather literacy by collecting, analysing, and representing data, and identify patterns and seasonal variability.

Watch our Deadly Weather video

Goegathaw Ngulayg (Dauan Island)

Goegathaw Ngulayg means geographical features of the land to which we belong, also the knowledge we hold about our land.

Developed on Dauanalgal Country, with Elders, community members and learners of Dauan Island and the Dauan Campus of Tagai State College, this resource connects science and culture through the knowledge of the Dauanalgal People, Traditional Custodians of Dauan Island. It explores landscapes, ecosystems, navigation, physics, design, and cultural heritage, and includes a curriculum-aligned teacher guide, videos, a Sphero Mini game, and cultural knowledge cards.

Watch our Goegathaw Ngulayg (Dauan Island) video

Kickin' It (Youth Justice Centre Version)

The Deadly Labs: Kickin’ It project brought the DeadlyScience team to Induna School at the Acmena Youth Justice Centre to co-design a science learning kit. Our Deadly Labs program aims to empower young Indigenous learners with culturally embedded scientific knowledge in the form of a learning kit that provides engaging activities that can be easily delivered using the materials provided in each kit including a teacher guide, equipment, video and other awesome resources. The Deadly Labs: Kickin’ It kits were created with the young people in the Induna School at the Acmena Youth Justice Centre. Each kit includes everything needed to conduct endless Australian Curriculum v9 aligned and differentiated sports science experiments suitable for year levels 5-10.

The learners from Induna School took ownership of every stage from conception to design of these kits and activities, even the video production! DeadlyScience is currently distributing kits to youth justice centres across Australia. This will not only result in culturally relevant scientific educational resources for all of the learners but it will also showcase the entrepreneurial and science skills of the youth involved in this project!

This project received grant funding from the Australian Government. The Deadly Labs: Kickin’ It project is funded by the Department of Industry, Science and Resources Maker Projects – Community STEM Engagement grants to support Indigenous youth in youth justice settings.

Watch our Kickin' It video

Co-design with Community

At DeadlyScience, co-design isn't a step in the process. It is the process.

Our co-design projects begin with community and end with community. We listen first, working alongside Elders, Traditional Knowledge holders, young people, educators and community members to understand local priorities, aspirations, challenges and opportunities.

From there, we bring together First Nations knowledge holders, STEM professionals, educators and industry experts to collaboratively shape resources, programs and opportunities that are culturally responsive, scientifically rigorous and grounded in community priorities.

Our approach to co-design means First Nations, youth and community voices are involved throughout every stage:

  • Community Priorities – Listening first to understand local aspirations, knowledge and challenges.
  • Collaborative Design – Bringing together Elders, young people, educators and STEM professionals to shape solutions.
  • Resource Development – Translating community knowledge and expertise into engaging STEM learning experiences.
  • Community Review – Refining and strengthening resources through feedback, testing, iteration and community approval.
  • Shared Impact – Delivering programs that are culturally responsive, community-led and designed to create lasting outcomes.

As a First Nations-led organisation, cultural authority remains with community, Elders and Traditional Knowledge holders guide what knowledge is shared, how it is shared and how it is preserved for future generations. The resources created through these partnerships remain grounded in community ownership and approval.

By bringing together First Nations knowledge systems and contemporary STEM expertise, we create programs that celebrate the science of the world's oldest continuing cultures while inspiring the next generation of scientists, engineers, innovators and knowledge holders.

This is what co-design means at DeadlyScience.