About Wild Kids Academy
Education with heart, curiosity and a deep connection to the natural world.
Wild Kids Academy was born from a belief that children learn best when strong classroom foundations meet lived experience. Based in Katima Mulilo, we serve learners from Nursery to Grade 9 through the Namibian national curriculum, enriched by environmental learning, community connection and meaningful outdoor discovery.
Where we are
In the heart of the KAZA landscape.
Wild Kids Academy is in Katima Mulilo, the main town of Namibia’s Zambezi Region – the narrow strip of land between Angola, Zambia and Botswana, a short distance from Zimbabwe.
The region lies at the centre of the Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA), a conservation landscape shared by five countries and home to rivers, wetlands and some of Africa’s largest elephant populations. This is the classroom our learners grow up in – and from here, our field trips take them across Namibia and beyond.
- Wild Kids Academy, Katima Mulilo
- KAZA conservation area (indicative)
What shapes our culture
The values behind everything we do.
Wonder
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Wonder in learning
We protect children’s curiosity and turn questions into lessons, projects and discovery.
Care
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Care for people and place
Relationships matter here — learners feel known, valued and connected to their environment.
Perspective
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Learning beyond four walls
Children connect classroom knowledge with rivers, wildlife, communities and real life in Namibia.
Growth
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Growth with confidence
From early years to adolescence, learners build competence, courage and pride in their progress.
Our beginnings
A family vision that became a thriving school community.
Wild Kids Academy began in July 2020 as a small home-schooling centre started by Laura Erculei and her husband Simone during the Covid lockdown. Their goal was simple: to keep their children’s learning alive while preserving a meaningful daily relationship with the bush and the natural world around them.
Other families soon joined them. In 2021, Wild Kids Academy was officially registered as an Education Trust (T42/2021) and as a private school. Today, around 255 learners from every background are part of a school that combines academic learning with outdoor experience, conservation understanding and community connection.
“Our motto is learning through experiences.”
— Dr. Laura Erculei, Founder & Director
The bush was our first classroom.
Recognition & impact