Library News
Premier’s Reading Challenge Monday 23 February – Friday 18 September 2026
This year marks the 25th anniversary of the NSW Premier’s Reading Challenge (PRC)! Since it began in 2001, millions of students across New South Wales have enjoyed taking part in this wonderful reading journey. MLC School is proud to be celebrating this milestone and joining in the fun again this year!
The PRC is a statewide initiative that encourages students to develop a lifelong love of reading for fun and pleasure. It is not a competition, but a challenge to inspire every student to read more books and explore different kinds of stories and information. There are thousands of books in the PRC list. PRC books in our library are labelled with coloured stickers so the students can easily identify them. The local libraries are also a great place for students to access books on the list. The list can be searched by clicking here and once logged in, books can be added to a student’s reading record.
All students who complete the Challenge and have their reading logged and validated by our PRC coordinator will receive a certificate signed by the Premier of NSW. Over the next few weeks, the girls in Year 2 to Year 5 will be given their login details and shown how to log their books. Kindergarten and Year 1 will complete the challenge at school. Challenge texts that are shared in the classroom and our library will be entered for them.
There will be more information about how to log books and access loan history in upcoming newsletters.
CBCA Book of the Year Awards 2026
Congratulations to the creators and publishers of the books in this year’s Notables. This is the longlist of the best Australian children’s books as judged by the CBCA panel of judges. They were announced on Tuesday and can be accessed here. We will find out the Shortlist in March and the winners are announced during Book Week Saturday 22 to Friday 28 August 2026. This year’s Book Week theme is Symphony of Stories!
Children’s Book Laureate
Andy Griffiths is the new Australian Children’s Laureate for 2026 and 2027. Andy Griffiths champions the power of reading as an adventure that all children and families can enjoy. On Tuesday our Year 3 students participated in a live zoom to meet Andy and enjoyed watching as a story was created before their eyes.
Happy reading!
– Sharon Seymour
Teacher/Librarian