Baby Genius! Two-year-old becomes youngest-ever American Mensa member after scoring a whopping 146 on her IQ test
- Kashe Quest scored an incredible 146 on her Mensa IQ test, placing her in the top two percent of test-takers
- The two-year-old showed signs of giftedness early on, her parents noted
- Now, the toddler is learning Spanish and Punjabi while most her age have just started learning their first words
- Executive director of American Mensa Trevor Mitchell described the child as ‘remarkable’
- The average American’s IQ is roughly 100, according to the organization
- Mensa was formed back in 1946 in Oxford, England by Roland Berrill and Lancelot Lionel Ware
A two-year-old girl in Los Angeles just became the youngest-ever American Mensa member after scoring an incredible 146 on an IQ test.
While most kids her age are still in diapers, Kashe Quest can name and identify all 50 U.S. states according to shape and location, as well as the entire periodic table, CNN reports.
The precocious youngster is also already learning Spanish and Punjabi and interpreting patterns, her parents told the news outlet.
The Los Angeles toddler is now the youngest American Mensa member in the history of the organization, and is already learning Spanish and Punjabi. The precocious preschooler currently reads at a kindergarten level, and even knows sign language and the periodic table, her parents say
Kashe’s mother Sukhjit Athwal says the two-year-old can already name and identify all 50 U.S. states by shape and location. Executive director of American Mensa Trevor Mitchell describes the toddler as ‘remarkable’
‘She has always shown us, more than anything, the propensity to explore her surroundings and to ask the question ”Why,'” Kashe’s father Devon Athwal said. ‘If she doesn’t know something, she wants to know what it is and how does it function, and once she learns it, she applies it.’
Are you smart enough to pass the Mensa IQ test?
The Mensa IQ test itself is a blend of language and number-based puzzles, with questions getting progressively more difficult.
These are some of the questions:
- What number is missing from this sequence? 4, 9, 16, 36, ?, 64
- Rearrange the letters of ‘ANY TIME’ to make a seven-letter word
- What letter should appear next in this sequence? L – K – J – H
- If FP=10 and HX=16, what does DS=
Kashe’s parents say her language skills developed at a rapid pace after saying her first few words.
‘Once her pediatrician also acknowledged it, at her 18-month check-up I had let her know where (Kashe) was on her number shapes and colors, and wanted her perspective on all of it, and she said it was amazing…it’s something worth looking into.’ Kashe’s mom Sukhjit Athwal told CNN.
‘I think the biggest takeaway from us doing it was we wanted to make sure we were giving her everything she also needed, in terms of her development and natural curiosity and her disposition — and we wanted to make sure we did our part in making that happen for her,’ her mother added.
The high IQ society was formed back in 1946 in Oxford, England by Roland Berrill and Lancelot Lionel Ware, according to the organization’s website.
Members of Mensa can attend meetings locally, where the best and brightest network and hold exclusive lectures, Business Insider reports.
The youngest member of Mensa is 28-month-old Muhammad Haryz Nadzim, who lives in the United Kingdom and has an IQ of 142.
Kashe’s IQ score of 146 makes her considerably smarter than than average American adult, who has an IQ of around 100, the Mensa website states.
The Mensa IQ test itself is a blend of language and number-based puzzles, with questions getting progressively more difficult.
While Mensa test-takers have to be at least 10 and a half years-old to take the supervised IQ test, younger applicants like Keshe must be assessed by an educational psychologist, Business Insider reports. It’s not clear exactly what questions Kashe was asked.
Kashe now finds herself in the rare company of those who scored in the top two percentile of Mensa test results.
The preschooler currently reads at a kindergarten level and also has mastered over 50 sign language signs, Kashe’s mother told TODAY.
Executive director of American Mensa Trevor Mitchell described the two-year-old as ‘remarkable’ to TODAY.
‘What may be rare here is that Kashe’s gifts have been recognized so early in life,’ Mitchell told the news outlet on Thursday. ‘Her parents will be able to help her with some of the unique challenges gifted youth encounter. Being the smartest person in the room isn’t always easy, and Mensa understands the importance of being challenged by others, of having our potential recognized, and of celebrating achievements.’
In spite of Kashe’s incredible IQ, her parents insist she is a normal little girl who loves the movie ‘Frozen’, and they do not want her growing up too fast.
‘Kashe loves playing make believe with her friends,’ Athwal said, noting that she and her husband have no plans to fast-track their daughter to kindergarten in the fall.
‘We don’t want her to feel like she has to grow up too fast,’ Athwal explained. ‘We don’t want to put that kind of pressure on her.’
In order to become a member of Mensa, one must score at or above the 98th percentile on specific standardized IQ tests, like the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scales or the Cattell Culture Fair Intelligence Test.
Being in this vaunted group means that Mensa members make up less than two percent of the world’s population, with 134,000 members worldwide spanning 100 different countries with 54 national groups.
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