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Reading makes your brain grow. Reading for pleasure makes your brain grow even more. The quote below is from a post by Larry Ferlazzo about a recent research report in the journal Scientific Studies of Reading.

Print exposure was the most consistent correlate of cortical thickness throughout the left hemisphere reading network, having significant correlations with five of the six regions of interest: OT, AG, SMG, IFG opercularis, and IFG triangularis. The pattern of correlations indicates that individuals with more print exposure had thicker cortices within the left-hemisphere reading network. Converging evidence for the relationship between reading experience and cortical thickness comes from the “pleasure reading” item on the background questionnaire. The question was, “How often in the last four weeks did you read for pleasure at least 30 minutes?” There are six possible responses ranging from very rarely to once a day or more. Responses on this question correlated with cortical thickness in AG and SMG, as well as with the composite print exposure variable.

From Study: Reading for Pleasure Makes Your Brain Grow (Literally)

At the end of his brief description of the findings in the article, Ferlazzo shares links to more information about the physical effects of learning on the brain:

I’ll definitely be sharing the study’s findings with my students. It’s just another reinforcement of the lessons we’ve done on what learning physically does to the brain, and which I’ve compiled in The Best Resources For Showing Students That They Make Their Brain Stronger By Learning and in my book, Helping Students Motivate Themselves.