Each year, the Readers Cup challenges students across Queensland to read widely, think deeply, and compete enthusiastically in a fast-paced, literature-based quiz event. It’s a team competition that celebrates reading, comprehension, teamwork, and quick thinking, and our Year 8 team rose brilliantly to the challenge!

Our GCC Team – Kirsten, Marley, Penny, Oscar, and Tina – embraced the opportunity to compete in the Sunshine Coast Regional Readers Cup, taking on the ‘marathon’ challenge of reading five novels in preparation for this exciting event. Their hard work paid off in a thrilling competition night hosted at Baringa State Secondary College, where 20 schools from across the region came together to showcase their reading prowess.

The team competed with enthusiasm, demonstrating outstanding teamwork and high energy throughout all four rounds of questions. There was much excitement in the room when the winners were announced, and the Glasshouse Christian College team was beaming when they were announced as First Place winners.  Well done, students – this is an impressive achievement!

Following their regional win, Kirsten, Marley, Oscar, Penny, and Tina are now preparing for their next big challenge: the State Finals of the Year 8 Readers Cup, to be held at Moreton Bay College in Brisbane in early September. We are exceedingly proud of our Readers Cup team and look forward to supporting them as they continue their reading journey to the State Finals!

Student Reflections: Why We Love Reading

We’re always keen to have students share their experiences, and all team members agreed that the best parts of the Readers Cup were the variety of books, the excitement of the competition, and—of course—the reading itself!

“We can only have one life, but while reading, we can experience ‘millions’ and escape reality.” – Kirsten

“It’s better than watching TV, you can picture all of the characters in your head and get really involved in it!” – Penny

“ I find reading really enjoyable and it’s often very entertaining!” – Oscar

“The best thing about reading is; when you need to stop reading (to go to bed, etc.), your imagination can take over and create solutions or events that happen next (even if they don’t happen!). This is the best thing about reading because it allows my imagination to grow, and the solutions I think up are very entertaining to me.” – Tina

‘I love reading because you can get lost in a good book, and there is such a variety of great books available for your next adventure.’ –  Marley

Top Recommendations for the Holidays

If you’re looking for a great holiday read, here are the top recommendations from our Year 8 Readers Cup team:

📘 Electric Life – Rachel Delahaye
📘 All the Beautiful Things – Katrina Nannestad
📘 Andromache Between the Worlds – Gabrielle Bergmoser

Electric Life is reviewed on Reading Zone as a must-read for fans of sci-fi and dystopian fiction. Readers are invited to journey to Estrella and uncover the challenges Alara faces on her mission.

To experience a sample of the action-packed Andromache Between the Worlds, click here to listen to the audio preview.

Katrina Nannestad, one of our team’s favourite authors, has written many popular historical fiction novels. Click here to watch her introduce All the Beautiful Things.

The College Library has multiple copies of all the recent Readers Cup competition titles. There are plenty of great stories ready for your next reading adventure. All those involved in the Readers Cup—students and staff alike—agree: reading for fun is worth the effort

!Holidays are coming… We hope you find plenty of opportunities to escape into a great book adventure.
See you at the Library!

Beryl Morris, Secondary Teacher Librarian

For Readers Cup photos, click HERE