Growing Minds. Building Champions. Rooting Culture.
Life School is our nursery and primary school in Nyamata, Bugesera District. Over 500 children, from the age of three. Two meals a day. The full national curriculum. And every Saturday, sport and culture.
What it is
Nursery from age three, then primary from P1 to P6: 180 children in nursery and 320 in primary this year, with 20 teachers in 12 classrooms. There is no secondary school, and there never will be. We do one thing, from three years old to the end of P6.
Children from deprived families and refugee children come at no cost, with full support. Parents contribute what they can toward the school's work.
TKTK: curriculum positioning, Pikler hybrid or national curriculum (05 §8 #4)
Nursery from age 3 · P1 to P6 · 20 teachers · 12 classrooms
Two meals a day
Every child eats twice at school. In Rwanda, 27% of children under five are stunted (Rwanda DHS, 2025). A child who has eaten can sit still, listen, and learn. The kitchen is not an extra. It is the school.
500 children · 2 meals · every school day
Three pillars
Studies
The national curriculum, consolidated. A baseline learning assessment for every pupil and refresher training for every teacher. Reading corners in every classroom by the second year, remedial support for pupils below level, and by the fifth year a full report on learning outcomes, with at least 80% of P6 pupils at grade-level competency.
Year 1: 100% of pupils assessed · 25 pupils per teacher · 100% of teachers trained
Sports
Football, athletics, volleyball and traditional games, for every pupil, not a team of the best. A rehabilitated ground and the first school teams in the second year. Inter-school matches and two certified coaches in the third. A district talent-detection tournament in the fourth. An annual festival with partner schools in the fifth.
Year 1: 100% of pupils in structured sport · at least 40% girls
Sports Peace Academy · within Life School
TKTK: what the Sports Peace Academy is, in one sentence
Culture
The Saturday sessions written down as a cultural curriculum. A school troupe, then competitions with neighbouring schools, then a Life School Cultural Festival open to the whole community, recognised as a Bugesera District event by the fifth year.
Year 1: one documented curriculum · a baseline for all 500 pupils
Ndi Umunyarwanda
Ndi Umunyarwanda means I am Rwandan. On Saturdays the children take part in traditional and modern dance, team sports and cultural competitions. We watch for talent. We also watch for something else: a child who is proud of who they are.
The plan counts about forty sessions a year, and it counts who comes. Participation is recorded per child, per session, and the share of girls is one of the numbers we publish.
Five years, 500 to 670
Gradual, sustainable growth, quality over scale. The pupil-teacher ratio stays at about 25 to 1.
| School year | Nursery | Primary | Total | Teachers | Classrooms |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026/27 · Y1 | 180 | 320 | 500 | 20 | 12 |
| 2027/28 · Y2 | 190 | 350 | 540 | 22 | 13 |
| 2028/29 · Y3 | 200 | 380 | 580 | 24 | 14 |
| 2029/30 · Y4 | 210 | 410 | 620 | 26 | 15 |
| 2030/31 · Y5 | 220 | 450 | 670 | 28 | 16 |
Girls at the centre
At least 40% of participants in sport are girls in the first year, and at least 50% in competitive sport by the third. These are targets we publish and monitor every term, and we talk to parents about them, so that inclusion is measured, not incidental.
Beyond one school
Life School was designed to be mentored out to neighbouring schools. The plan ends with a replication toolkit, at least three partner schools adopting the model, and Life School recognised as Bugesera's hub for talent detection.
A pupil's story
Jasmine, a girl with big dreams
Sixth in the national examination · Life School, Nyamata
Jasmine is a bright 13-year-old girl living with her mother Clementine, two older siblings, and their grandmother. The family faces many challenges, as they have no steady income and struggle every day to cover basic needs like food, clothing, and school supplies.
Clementine, Jasmine's mother, was born with a disability and is a single parent working tirelessly to support her family despite her own physical difficulties. Her strength and determination keep the family going, even in tough times.
Jasmine dreams of becoming a surgeon, a goal fuelled by her desire to help others and improve lives. With the support of Life School, Jasmine can attend school and pursue her education. This support is vital, giving her family hope and the chance for a better tomorrow.
Jasmine came sixth in the national examination, and it made the school proud. Your generosity helps keep her dream alive and lifts her entire family out of hardship. Thank you for being a part of Jasmine's story.
GiveThe families
Every weekend, on the school premises, we train parents and caregivers: positive parenting, nutrition, life skills, public health. The child sits in our classrooms five days a week; the household raises them the other side of the gate. We work with both.
A Parents Committee sits between the advisors and the school's manager in how the school is run. The plan formalises its roles.
What the school needs
The plan names it plainly.
- Academic
- Four additional classrooms by the fifth year. Reading corners in every classroom by the second.
- Sports
- A rehabilitated multi-purpose ground in the second year. Equipment. Basic changing rooms and storage by the fourth.
- Culture
- Costumes and traditional instruments. A covered stage by the fourth year.
- Cross-cutting
- Continued investment in the kitchen and the feeding programme.
The plan, published
Every target on this page is in the five-year plan, as a table you can read, filter and export. Its Actual column is empty today, and says so.
Read the planIf you represent an institution
A ministry, a federation, an embassy, a fund: the five-year plan and the formal ask are on the Partner page, with the logframe and the registration.
If you are one person
The Give page shows what a day at Life School costs, and takes a card.