Tubs or Bins for separating & storing program & DITHR books

[abrightmom]

I've read about Julie and Carrie doing this and I like it. They refer to keeping book sets together for each HOD Guide as well as DITHR levels. I'd like to do this. It will keep curious eyes from sneaking a read ahead of time! It will help me to keep the books organized and easy to find.

I need practical help here! What KIND of tubs/bins are you using exactly? We have Target in town (there's a Wal Mart that I haven't been to yet so that is an option as well). Can you share dimensions, shape, brand, style, size, anything to help me visualize the kind of tub that is working? Do you keep the guide with the books or do the guides stack on your bookcase?

Thanks!

[Sue G in PA]

I wish I knew how to share a photo! I will try to explain what I do. We are doing 2 guides. In a fabric bin (purchased at Target) on the top shelf or our 5 shelf built-in bookshelf I keep all books for the Preparing Guide that we are not currently using. On the next shelf, in a small toy bin (roughly size of a large shoebox) is the guide and all books we are currently using. They fit perfectly. I keep all of our LHFHG books and guide in a magazine holder purchased on clearance at Target. They all fit perfectly, too. We have been lax in doing DIthor consistently, but here is what I do with our home library of books. I sorted them into the 9 genres used in DITHOR and put them in the small, shoebox-sized plastic bins, facing forward...not like you normally put books on a shelf, kwim? Any books that do not fit go next to that box on the same shelf. The boxes are labeled by genre as are the shelves. These are on a different bookshelf than our Guides and the kids' school crates. This is probably as clear as mud. Sorry. I'll see if I can post a pic later. I had to use what we had lying around as far as storage containers b/c we have a very limited budget.

[water2wine]

Truly so many things will work I used to use some smaller bins I got from Wallmart that are decorative and those worked. I wanted to hold all the books from each program in their own place without having to switch things out on the shelves so I bought a bunch of milk crates from Wallmart and covered them with fabric. Super easy to do if you sew even at all. http://lauragunn.typepad.com/theundercovercrate.pdf The tutorial shows you how to make them in any size. More than probably most will want to do but just listing it in case it helps someone who wants something more decorative and is craft obsessed as I am.

[arstephia]

Mine are just in the smaller sized "banker boxes" available at Walmart or any office supply store. Every book needed is in that box for that guide. I am just starting DITHOR but am pulling books off the shelves now to prevent some being used as summer leisure reads. The lids are study and just slip off, and the boxes are all stackable. For the guides we are currently using, those boxes sit under each child's desk/table. The others are in storage.

[Heart_Mom]

Truly so many things will work I used to use some smaller bins I got from Wallmart that are decorative and those worked. I wanted to hold all the books from each program in their own place without having to switch things out on the shelves so I bought a bunch of milk crates from Wallmart and covered them with fabric. Super easy to do if you sew even at all. http://lauragunn.typepad.com/theundercovercrate.pdf The tutorial shows you how to make them in any size. More than probably most will want to do but just listing it in case it helps someone who wants something more decorative and is craft obsessed as I am.

Thanks for sharing this!!! I'm a crafty wannabe, so while my skills are probably not quite up to making this, it's inspiring to see what can be done.

[my3sons]

Great answers already! For our daily work, we use 2 tubs, one for the books we are currently using, and one for the books to come later in the guide. I snapped a picture of them and posted them on this thread:
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=5531

For long-term storage, I have one big shelving unit in the basement (super sturdy, not so pretty, Menards's type shelves that are deep and tall ). I bought large rectangular flat clear tubs, one for each year of HOD. They stack on top of one another neatly, and are probably about 30 inches long, 6 inches tall, and 18 inches wide. All of the books for a year fit in them. For the Emerging Readers, DITHOR book sets, and phonics books, I use shallow clear tubs with snap-lock lids. They are probably 10 x 14 x 4 or so. I purchased all of these at Walmart. I stuck white labels on the spine of each book, with a heart and the guide's abbreviation (i.e. CTC, DITHOR 2/3, RTR Ext., etc.). This has helped us re-shelf them later, as the dc often take the books promptly to the room to reread after we've finished them, they love them and want to reread them often usually. My middle ds knows he can't read PHFHG on up books as they are in years to come for him. HTH!

In Christ,
Julie

[abrightmom]

JULIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wow, thank-you! I am getting ready for Bigger and you've blessed me in a big, encouraging way today! LOVE the pictures. I am very visual and you have really simplified the prep. process for me. Thanks for the bin dimensions as well. I think your main bins are underbed storage bins. I love that idea along with labeling the books. I'm going to work on that this month as well for ALL of the books we are acquiring. We're having box day many times over as we get ready to launch HOD.

Thank-you thank-you thank-you!

[my3sons]

HOORAY - I love to help! Thanks!!!
In Christ,
Julie