26 Book Celebration

Our avid readers have once again gathered to celebrate the conclusion of another successful 26 Book Challenge, marking our fifth year of this beloved tradition at Concordia. This year, we celebrated a record number of students completing all 26 books, despite some particularly tricky categories. Thanks to our fabulous library staff, who expertly guided students to find books that met the challenge criteria, everyone found a way to participate.

Adding to the festivities, our amazing student Book Council baked delicious treats and transformed the space with literary-themed decorations. A big thank you to Mostly Books at Mitcham for generously donating several books as prizes. Students who participated were also entered into the draw to win signed copies of new release novels by famous Australian authors and book vouchers.

Each year, the 26 Book Challenge grows bigger and better. Next year, we’re taking the adventure global—get your passports ready as the 26 Book Challenge will transport us around the world! Let the countdown begin!

Katherine Obst Year 8 Lutheran Schools Public Speaking Competition

Concordia recently hosted the Katherine Obst Year 8 Lutheran Public Speaking competition. This annual event brings together talented Year 8 speakers from Lutheran secondary schools across South Australia. This year we had students from St Martin's in Mt Gambier participate through a livestream. Eight different schools selected two students each to present three-minutes speeches. The school with the highest combined score was to be crowned winner. 

The standard was very high, and students really impressed the adjudicators with entertaining and informative speeches. Congratulations to the two competitors from Encounter College in Victor Harbor who placed first. Well done to Sophia (8LBRO) and Eva (8LTHO) from Concordia who placed a very close second.

Public speaking is such an important skill in life. Let your words shape the world. Please contact Emma Rieger if you would like to extend yourself in this area by participating in the 2025 Rostrum Voice of Youth competition.

Partnering with Flinders University Researchers

Three Digital Technologies classes recently partnered with a PhD student from the College of Science and Engineering at Flinders University. This biomedical engineer is co-developing a suite of computer games designed as rehabilitation tools for young people with cognitive impairments resulting from cancer diagnoses. The partnership gave our students a unique opportunity to see real-world applications of digital technology skills while contributing to vital research. Students played a variety of games and provided detailed feedback to help researchers enhance the games’ appearance and relevance for an adolescent audience.

Emma Rieger
Enrichment and Extended Learning