By the time their daughter Kashe was 18 months old, Devon and Sukhjit Quest began to suspect that she was highly intelligent.
The little girl has always been inquisitive and curious about the world around her. She went from uttering her first word to speaking in full sentences in just a few days!
Before she was 2, Kashe could name every element on the periodic table, identify all 50 states in the U.S. by their shape and location, and was learning Spanish. Her parents voiced their observations of Kashe’s intelligence at her 18-month pediatric appointment. A few quick numbers, shapes, and colors tests confirmed that Kashe was well ahead of the typical toddler!
Devon and Sukhjit then took Kashe to a psychologist, who tested her IQ and administered a Mensa test. Mensa is a high IQ society open only to people “who score at the 98th percentile or higher on a standardized, supervised IQ or other approved intelligence test.”
Kashe scored a 146 on the test. For reference, the average American score is around 100, and that’s for adults! Mensa has now admitted Kashe into their ranks, making her the youngest American to ever earn membership in the prestigious organization.
Her parents are dedicated to raising her with the learning opportunities she requires. Sukhjit used her background in education to open a preschool called the Modern Schoolhouse to accommodate Kashe’s needs.
“She’s still 2 at heart, and she needs to be with children her age, and not have that pressure put on her to be older than she needs to be or act older than she needs to be,” Sukhjit said.
The school has space for just 12 children right now, but they’re hoping to expand in the future.
Parenting a genius isn’t always easy for the Los Angeles, California, couple. They’ve had to train themselves to be careful with what they say, because Kashe is always listening carefully and is fully cognizant of the world around her.
“It has taught us patience in how to communicate with her and we are very conscious of the words we use with her and how we explain things,” Sukhjit said. “It has definitely taught us how to be better communicators with each other and collectively as a family because we all have to be on the same page.”
This toddler has already accomplished something most people never will! We can’t wait to see what she does in the future.
Share this story to congratulate Kashe on becoming Mensa’s youngest American member.
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