A bit of a sensational title, I would say that Learning to Read as early as possible, then reading well above age level, would be a greater "Educational Life Hack".
Most unfortunately, not every child will even have access to this unarguably beneficial life hack.
I learned to read early because my immigrant mom read to me in her non-native language every single night, and that's because she came from a culture that lauds education.
I wish every child was lucky enough to have a parent like this, but so many kids only get their first exposure to education in public school.
But doesn't this reading ability plateau quickly? My 13 years old son reads pretty much as well as I do. I am working with him on SAT tests and there are some things he can improve. But not that much.
As opposed to Math - which keeps going and going well beyond college....
My superpower is that I learned to read at a very young age. It allowed me to find some modicum of success despite a lifetime of undiagnosed adhd. If I hadn't learned how to read early, and thus learned how to read fast- I doubt I would have ever gotten to a point of enjoying reading.
I learned to read early because my immigrant mom read to me in her non-native language every single night, and that's because she came from a culture that lauds education.
I wish every child was lucky enough to have a parent like this, but so many kids only get their first exposure to education in public school.