A remarkable five-year-old who learned to read before he could walk has wowed millions of people online with his 'photographic' memory and ability to write in 10 different languages.

When Sebastian Esposito, from Albuquerque, New Mexio, was 18 months old, he became obsessed with a wooden letter puzzle and began spelling out words like cat and dog - going on to write more than 200 words by the time he was two, as well as learning the entire Russian alphabet.

Sebastian has a skill called hyperlexia, which is when a child has a reading ability well in advance of their age and has a fascination with numbers or letters, and has also been diagnosed with autism.  

Now five and in kindergarten, where his classmates are still learning their ABCs, Sebastian has a reading age of 18, has memorised the Greek, German, Armenian, and Turkish alphabets and can recite the entire periodic table of elements by heart - although he cannot yet tie his shoelaces.

Proud dad Ryan Esposito, 30, a mine worker, who lives with his photographer wife Amanda Esposito, 33, her daughter from a previous relationship, Shyann, 14, and Sebastian, said: 'Every parent thinks their child is special. But I knew Sebastian was really special.