10-year-old knows the Singapore pledge in 4 languages
A newly minted Singapore citizen, Thai-born Tanabordee Pansook Lim speaks English, Mandarin and Thai, and taught himself to recite the pledge in all four official languages. With National Day just round the corner, Vanessa Liu meets the 10-year-old to find out his motivation for doing so and looks at why learning new languages is good for the brain.
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Vanessa Liu
While many of his schoolmates fall silent when the pledge is recited in Tamil on Thursdays, Tanabordee Pansook Lim says the words clearly and confidently.
The 10-year-old, born in Thailand's Korat province, moved to Singapore five years ago speaking not one word of English. Now, he has accomplished a rare feat: learning the pledge by heart in the four official languages.

