A two-year-old boy from Ghana, Isaiah Gyamfi, is gaining international attention as a child prodigy who can count in at least four languages and solve complex math problems.
Isaiah started showing extraordinary intelligence at five months, his mother, Jazelle, told the Mirror. She said she noticed him enjoying learning one day while watching a video on YouTube on her phone, so she decided to put on a video about Japanese numbers.
Jazelle said Isaiah listened to the video repeatedly until he could recite the numbers back-to-back. In less than 24 hours, he learnt to count up to 40 in Japanese.
When Isaiah was four months old, Jazelle, an early childhood education teacher based in London, had already started creating a learning environment for him. She put numeracy and literacy flashcards in their living room so Isaiah could learn through visuals.
Months passed, and Isaiah always surprised his parents when he pointed out the correct letters and eventually sounded them out using phonics. He also practised writing numbers and solving math problems by himself.
Some weeks later, he would sound them out using phonics.
Jazelle said, “I was first taken back and thought. Did my eight-month-old call out letters? I remember laughing nervously, but I was excited and wanted to hear it again.
“I thought maybe it sounded like he said the numbers and letters, but he said something else. But he continued to say it, which confirmed what I thought.
“I remember telling his dad that when he got home from work, I took Isaiah to the wall where the letter and number stickers were. When he called them out, we both stood there just laughing.
“We were first-time parents and just felt so proud and excited.”
Jazelle also noticed that her son enjoys learning different languages, so she showed him a Spanish video and gave him flashcards. He now speaks several languages, including English, Spanish, French, Italian, Twi, Yoruba, and Japanese.
Jazelle began to capture Isaiah’s learning achievements and share videos on an Instagram account for Isaiah. As evident in the videos, several people are amazed at how Isaiah is enjoying learning.
