In July 2017, Lawson and Gwendolyn Lundberg, twins, were born prematurely. Despite the fact that Gwendolyn was in good health from the start, Lawson faced numerous challenges.
Lawson spent weeks in the NICU, unable to eat, battling for his life. His physicians expected him to suffer major delays in cognitive development by the time he was released.
When Lawson only spoke two words in his first two years of life, their suspicions looked to be confirmed. Sara, his mother, noticed a significant change.
“He looked light years ahead of us, learning shapes without our help, learning phrases we didn’t even recall uttering around him,” Sara added.
The Lundberg family, along with countless others in Portland, Oregon, had a massive ice storm earlier this year. Lawson began learning the names of countries and their capitals while they were trapped inside.
“It was then that we figured out he had somehow learned phonics on his own, which blew us away,” Sara said.
And Lawson just keeps on learning! He now knows the names of all 50 states in the U.S. as well as every country in the world — all 195 of them! He’s also memorized every flag and capital around the globe.
After observing his endless thirst for knowledge, Lawson’s parents decided to determine his IQ by having him tested professionally. The results? 151. That puts him close to Albert Einstein, who is estimated to have scored around 160 at a much later age!
The brilliant little tyke then joined Mensa, a nonprofit organization for individuals with IQs of 130 or higher. At just 3 years old, Lawson became one of their youngest members.
“He didn’t get any of the questions incorrect for around 21% of the IQ exam, so they ran out of questions to ask him,” Sara explained. “Normally, once you get a few wrong, you move on,” says the narrator, “but they couldn’t move on until they ran out, which is far beyond normal.”
Lawson will most certainly take another IQ test in the future because older children’s IQ tests are more accurate because they have endless questions. Until then, his family is devising new ways for him to make a difference in the world.
“We’ve discussed the value of generosity,” Sara explained. “When Lawson and his twin sister were in the NICU, March of Dimes was extremely helpful.”
With a goal of supporting the charity, Lawson is getting creative with a paintbrush. Whenever people donate to March of Dimes through their fundraising page, donors are sent a painting of a state or country, all of which are made by Lawson himself!
This 4-year-old is already proving himself to be an intelligent, kind person. We can’t wait to see what Lawson accomplishes in the future!
Share this story to celebrate Lawson and his family.
