KUALA LUMPUR: Down-syndrome child Muhamad Luqman Nazim Muhamad Fadzli, 17, proves to be a fast learner, having memorised verses from the Quran at such a young age.

Although born a special child, he is blessed strong memory and was able to memorise simple quranic verses such as the al-Fatihah, al-Falaq, an-Nas, al-Kaafirun, al- Asr, al-Fil, al-Ma'un and al-Kausar since he was very young.

According to his mother, Farah Nazim Bulya Nazim, 42, of Permatang Pauh, in Penang, Muhammad Luqman Nazim, who is the eldest of four siblings started recognising letters, numbers and jawi at the age of two.

At the age of six, he was already able to read, she said of her son, who also has heart problems.

"Alhamdulillah, Muhamad Luqman Nazim is blessed with a strong memory. He can remember things fast, like memorising surah al-Kahfi verse 1 to 10 in just three days and the Qunut Nazilah in a day," she told Bernama.

She said she encouraged her son by talking to him.

"I emphasise the use of intonation by moving my lips slowly because I believe at this age he is actually learning through lip movements," she said, adding that she would also reward her son for every new achievement he made.

She said Muhamad Luqman Nazim also liked to help her in the kitchen and a video of them together cooking went viral after it was posted on the Facebook "Masak Apa Hari Ini".

Farah Nazim, who is a member of the Persatuan Bunga-Bunga Syurga Sindrom Down Malaysia, hoped the community and the relevant parties would be sensitive to the needs of the people with disabilities.

"These people have their own specialties. They should be loved and taught to be independent," she said and expressed the need for the government to introduce a special syllabus for Down Syndrome children.

-- BERNAMA