I think it's important to have personal reading goals. I've been trying to read all of Charles Dickens' novels. I've been at it for a few years. And now look at this progress:
I have a passion for exploring the science of reading through practice. I feel like I've done very well. I have to post a link to, what I believe, is one of the most influential documents of my career. It became the only textbook in my first reading class that I took for my Special Education license/bachelor's program.
Other really amazing tools include:
Because they're in the public domain and FREE!!! Other things I think are useful are the gospel library from https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/ -- I've used the Old Testament, New Testament, Book of Mormon and other religious books to practice with too. I'm a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and we are encouraged to read from the scriptures daily. I think that one of the things that actually helped me learn how to read is reading both the Bible and the Book of Mormon daily.
So, besides my progress with the writings of Charles Dickens, I've been using these, plus other books and also my SIOP training to help me increase my ability to read. I started in 2006 with Moby Dick. That was a hard book, and I ended up quitting, but I started it again in 2013 and actually finished it with the help of the free resources above. I used some SIOP techniques as well, like chunk and chew and two-word strategies (summarizing my reading in approximately 2 words).
I hope you find these links helpful. They've been phenomenal in my own personal reading goals.
