[READ] Using Statistics to Make Educational Decisions

Using Statistics to Make Educational Decisions

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What are the benefits of reading books? A lot, actually

Love to curl up on the couch with a good book? You aren’t alone.

According to a Gallup poll published in 2022, in 2021 Americans read roughly 12 books a year, amounting to around one a month. That number is the lowest it’s been since Gallup began tracking Americans’ reading habits back in 1990.

Whether the decline in reading books is the result of busy lifestyles or the lure of binge-watching the latest series on TV, the time has come to get back on the book bandwagon.

If the latest bestseller is collecting dust on your nightstand, knowing the benefits of reading might be just the motivation you need to pick it back up.

Of course, you can also join TODAY’s own book club band leader, Jenna Bush Hager, in the new initiative Streaking With Jenna to get back on track because as readers already know, there’s nothing quite like settling in a with a great book. Designed to build or bolster a reading habit, Streaking With Jenna encourages people to keep track of their reading streak in 2023.

Download a printable Streaking With Jenna calendar here.

It’s like a sanctuary, Maryanne Wolf, professor-in-residence at UCLA and director, Center for Dyslexia, Diverse Learners, and Social Justice, tells TODAY.com.

I have 20 minutes in the morning, 20 minutes in the evening after Netflix or whatever I’ve done in between a thousand emails, Wolf explains of her reading habit.

And that helps center me, it helps remind me of the priorities of the day before, of the next day, and of that very moment.

From increasing your vocabulary and conversation skills to sleeping better and living longer, here are 10 scientific and psychological benefits of reading to inspire you to get back into the habit.

1) Reading might lengthen your lifespan
2) Encourages empathy
3) Helps lessen cognitive decline
4) Reduces stress
5) Improves critical thinking
6) Promotes self-care
7) Enhances conversation skills
8) Improves sleep
9) Fosters connection
10) Provides time to recharge your batteries

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