As part of the larger school's agenda to reintroduce Ojibwe culture, the comic book project sought to sensitize students to several interrelated issues:

• The importance of history for Native Americans, illustrated through a current, concrete event
• An increased familiarity with tribal philosophies and laws
• An increased understanding of the basic concepts of archaeology and the particular cultural and ethical issues it raises for native cultures

As part of the English class, the project aimed at developing:

• Improved literacy and reading comprehension
• Increased basic word skills and vocabulary development
• Improved research abilities
• Ability to discuss the important structural elements of story telling (such as character, plot, time, and place)

Finally, as a class activity, Mr. Nieboer used the comic book as an opportunity to:

• Give the students a strong sense of ownership in the project
• Help them develop group skills, particularly to teach them how to work together toward a common goal and support each other to achieve that goal
• Increase their familiarity and ease with the creative process

Although the Nay Ah Shing School is not currently required to meet Minnesota state standards, Mr. Nieboer sought to embed district standards for reading and the arts into the projects, and to integrate earth sciences and social studies into the work as much as possible.

Minnesota State Standards