Meet Lethukuthula Bhengu: 3-Year-Old Soweto Toddler Who Stunned the World with Her Reading Abilities

• A three-year-old girl named Lethukuthula Bhengu from Johannesburg has achieved the title of the youngest African "kidfluencer" after winning the fan favourite award at the 2023 Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards
• Lethu's parents founded Mini Brainiacs, which sells educational material such as reading cards, counting cards, books and puzzles, and they are passionate about early childhood education
• Her parents think the reason she has gained so much attention is that learning to read is tough, even for older kids

The Johannesburg kidfluencer went viral on TikTok

Lethu rose to fame when a video of her reading skills went viral on TikTok, amassing three million likes. Lethu's parents, Ntombikayise and Phakiso, founded Mini Brainiacs, which sells educational material such as reading cards, counting cards, books and puzzles, and are passionate about early childhood education. They teach Lethu using phonetics, sounding out letters and simple words from age two.

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You can see the post below:

Early childhood education

Her parents noticed her interest in learning when she was 16 months old and began teaching her about the human body. From there, Lethu learned to identify shapes, recognise colours, hold a pen and draw different shapes.

Ntombikayise saw Lethu playing a game on her cousin's phone and then taught her how to read. The Kids' Choice Awards winner quickly progressed from memorising three-letter words to sounding out four-letter words, then sentences, and finally became an avid reader.

Lethu's parents work together to create content for Lethu on Instagram and TikTok, and the family has amassed 924,000 followers under the username @lethu_nanas.

Lethu wins big at Nickelodeon's kids' choice awards

According to News24, Nickelodeon contacted Lethu's family via Instagram last year, notifying them that Lethu had been nominated for the Kids' Choice Awards, which they won. Lethu's dad, Phakiso, says his daughter was thrilled to win, especially when she posed with the mock-up blimp trophy at the awards watch party. The actual award with Lethu's name will arrive from the US in a few months.

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A young reading prodigy from Soweto

Lethu's mother, Ntombikayise, thinks Lethu has gained so much attention because learning to read is challenging, even for older kids, and it was a shock that a two-year-old could do it so easily.

"I think people undermine kids – they're very smart.

"If they're able to dance when they see their dads dance or say certain words when they hear their parents say them, then they can do other stuff meant for older kids," she adds.

Mzansi in awe as fearless boy walks into 1st-day of school like a boss

In other toddler news, Briefly News reported on a little boy who went viral on TikTok after strolling into preschool. The tiny tot got millions of views as he bravely entered his new school. Many people were amazed by how fearless the little kid was. People praised the little boy for being so bold.

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Lerato Maluleke commented:

"This little one hangs around his dad too much. Too cute."

Source: Briefly News