Trulittle Scribe Hero (7-11)
Lauryn Rose Teixeira (Aged: 10 years)
Lauryn is an author and Kidpreneur who is involved in several activities supporting her community by raising awareness for more positive representation in children’s media. Lauryn is an empathetic child who lives every day finding ways to help those who need it most. She dreams of fighting for a better world for all of us.
At the age of four, Lauryn was one of the characters in the book I’ve Got My Hair Out by Nathaniel Phillips, a book that empowers Black girls to love their Afro Hair.
Lauryn is passionate about supporting the community and the planet. She was one of the volunteers, of the campaign #ACTFOREALING helping artists to paint a beautiful illustration titled: A vision for net zero Ealing at the Ealing Broadway shopping centre.
In 2021, Lauryn joined an organization called Blameme, an institute that teaches children creative industries disciplines. Lauryn received classes in Drama from Sanchaez Rain Li, one of the characters of the Netflix series Free Rein. Her confidence and unique voice also guided her not only to be invited to perform Queen Rafika in the play The Lion King but also to receive free vocal classes with the singer Leanna Sian. Currently, she attends drama classes in the Speak Up club, at Holy Family Primary School.
Lauryn is part of the school choir, performing in different events in the Ealing borough, and attended Young Voices Choir for the second time. In school talent competitions, she always participates and encourages her peers to contribute too. Lauryn is also a member of the Southbank Youth Voices Choir, performing diverse songs for different audiences.
She also plays guitar in the Musibox program at Holy Family Catholic School.
Lauryn plays football and is part of the girls’ team called London Athletic Football Club. Lauryn is also a student at DeSilva Taekwondo at Ealing Broadway and participates in competitive competitions during the year.
During Black History Month, Lauryn was invited to be a model for a photoshoot about Black children’s Representation by the photographer Laura Whereatt. Her image was selected to be showcased for the exhibition Young British and Black. Lauryn had an enormous picture on display at Brixton Market in London
Lauryn also attends Cape Verdean and Portuguese classes at Cultura Cabo Verde UK, an organization that promotes Cape Verdean Culture in the UK. She is also part of the Cape Verdean children’s dance group, dancing batuku, and funaná. Lauryn is also the official host of the organization, presenting important events such as Cape Verdean Independence Day and Cape Verdean Women's Day and assisting the community with Translations from Portuguese to English.
Lauryn is the main character of the documentary, Where Are the Brown Dolls? A story where she joins her mother in an investigative piece to find out why there are no black dolls in the toy shops.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRo3XQwjjIQ&t=14
Lauryn is also involved in fundraising, every year she raises funds to help Bliss, the premature baby charity in the UK. Lauryn’s little brother Joylen was born premature, and Lauryn was extremely supportive during the times that her brother needed additional health assistance. It's been a cause close to her heart since he was born, and Lauryn volunteers to support Bliss and attends the Bliss Little Lights walk, at London Bridge.
In October 2022, Lauryn joined Ultra Education, an organization that teaches entrepreneurship to children from diverse communities. For 8 weeks, Lauryn learned how to create a business model, a communications strategy, and all the ideas to create a book. Lauryn self-taught herself how to use the Graphic design software, Canva, and wrote the book. Lauryn, that’s Me: The Journey of a Powerful African Girl She is officially the youngest author of African Portuguese descent to publish a book in the UK.
Lauryn’s book is now available in Portuguese, and in September she will release the Spanish and French editions. The book is now available for purchase on Amazon and Waterstones. Lauryn’s book launch was sponsored by Crayola UK and counted with the presence of the Mayor of Brent, the Consul of Angola, and the director of the British Toys Association, among other representatives of organisations in the UK.
The book is available to purchase:
https://www.yobudi.com/products/lauryn-thats-me-the-journey-of-a-powerful-african-girl
In December, Lauryn was one of the young entrepreneurs who participated in the Ultra Fair alongside 160 children. This is the biggest young entrepreneurs fair in Europe. At this fair, her books were sold out, and she inspired families and children who were impressed with her courage and marketing skills.
Lauryn was invited as a guest of honor by the organizationLuso Connection UK, based in Manchester, and during the event, she gave a talk about her writing experience and empowered other children from Lusophone backgrounds to follow their dreams. Lauryn gave a talk about the lack of representation in children's books that tell the stories of children raised by single parents.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CqYhzu0oPq6/
Lauryn participated in Instagram Lives with the American organisation Black Children's Book Week and spoke about her book with other children’s authors. https://www.instagram.com/p/CpURPnao682/
Lauryn was also nominated as the author of the month by the organisation Young Black Shining Star. She gives talks in schools where she talks about her book and empowers children to love themselves and follow their dreams.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Csg0sqAI4Nw/
Lauryn loves horses and works as a volunteer at Ealing Riding School. In this volunteer job, Lauryn assists the stables, looking after the horses, grooming, and cleaning, and her leadership personality led her to also be a horse leader, leading horses, and children during their classes. Lauryn also helps with birthdays, parties, and holiday clubs.
On March 22, 2023, Lauryn was selected by Ultra Education to participate in the Bright Futures Pilot, where she was an investor for a day, and analysed the ideas of adult entrepreneurs’ businesses.
Lauryn was interviewed by the BBC World Service for the program Focus on Radio, where she spoke about what inspired her to write her book, and how proud she is to be African. Lauryn explained that she wrote her book for three different reasons: 'The first reason was that there are not enough Black children's books that tell stories of children being raised by a single parent, and I want to bring more of these stories to the world. The second reason is that my dad is from Sao Tomé and Principe, and my mom is from Cape Verde, and there are no books for children about my parents' countries. Finally, I want to inspire young girls to heal and show them the importance of self-love. (Lauryn, BBC World Service, 2023).
https://www.instagram.com/reel/CrLT113omqq/?igshid=MjA3NmNkZWY5Yg%3D%3D
Lauryn won two awards in the Descendants 18th Annual Dr. John Roberts QC CBE Achievement Awards 2023. She won the category of entrepreneurial skills, with the maximum vote from all the members of the jury. She also won the prestigious Kwame Kwei – Armah OBE award.
Lauryn's Instagram page is:
https://www.instagram.com/lauryn.thatsme/?igshid=Y2I2MzMwZWM3ZA%3D%3D
