Native California Resources
revised 12-16-15
Although many of these resources are specific to the Ohlone,
some of them can be applied to the study of other California tribes.
some of them can be applied to the study of other California tribes.
Places to Go
The California Museum
1020 O St
Sacramento, CA 95814
1020 O St
Sacramento, CA 95814
Check out their You Tube playlist called Californian Indians: Making a Difference. It captures some of the videos on display in the museum include Andrew Galvin, curator of Mission Dolores, speaking on the decisions the Ohlone needed to make.
Although actual shellmound sites are hard to find as most have been built over or sadly destroyed, Coyote Hills has a shellmound site and many Ohlone related field trips. Applications are due to the East Bay Regional Park Service in May, August, and December for the upcoming season. Trips are free for classrooms in Alameda and Contra Costa counties but there is a fee for others. There are also programs in Sunol and Berkeley.
More information can be found here.
More information can be found here.
The museum has many artifacts of the Native Californians on display in their Gallery of California History.
For 4th and 5th graders, there are two docent led field trips available; History of Early California and California Indians. An interactive program can be added to a tour through the California Indian Lifeways program.
Self guided visits are available with a tour book and student worksheets.
All visits to Oakland Museum have a fee but scholarships are available.
For 4th and 5th graders, there are two docent led field trips available; History of Early California and California Indians. An interactive program can be added to a tour through the California Indian Lifeways program.
Self guided visits are available with a tour book and student worksheets.
All visits to Oakland Museum have a fee but scholarships are available.
There are two shellmound sites in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area but their exact locations are kept secret.
In the absence of seeing a shellmound, Crissy Field’s Ohlone meadow would be an appropriate place to gather and imagine what life was like a few thousand years ago.
In the absence of seeing a shellmound, Crissy Field’s Ohlone meadow would be an appropriate place to gather and imagine what life was like a few thousand years ago.
Mission Dolores has a wonderful display of Yelamu artifacts and a replica of the village, Chutchui . The mission can be visited as a self guided tour for individuals or families but school groups need to reserve a tour ahead of time.
Docent tours are also available.
Admission is charged.
Docent tours are also available.
Admission is charged.
Point Reyes has a replica Miwok village called Kule Locko.
They offer ranger led field trips, but they do fill up very quickly.
Self-guided field trips are available on Mondays and Fridays without a reservation.
They also have a DVD available for classrooms.
Just call please call (415) 464-5139 and leave a message with your name, the school's name and address.
They offer ranger led field trips, but they do fill up very quickly.
Self-guided field trips are available on Mondays and Fridays without a reservation.
They also have a DVD available for classrooms.
Just call please call (415) 464-5139 and leave a message with your name, the school's name and address.
The San Francisco Botanical Garden has a California Native Garden.
They also offer 90 minute docent led field trips on
Native People, Native Plants in the Spring and Fall for Grades 3 to 5.
They also offer 90 minute docent led field trips on
Native People, Native Plants in the Spring and Fall for Grades 3 to 5.
Classroom Curriculum
Inside a SFUSD supplemental curriculum called City By The Bay, there is great visualization reading that guides students to a description on the Bay Area during the Ohlone time period. lt was written by Kristine Parker in the early 1990s and I'm working on getting permission to put it up here.
Another difficult but well worth it resource is Nancy Morita's map,
"Wild in the City: The Ecology and Natural History of San Francisco".
Published in 1992, it shows the natural landscape of San Francisco before 1790 (with Ohlone settlements) compared to the modern era.
The only place I've found it is here. (Scroll to the bottom and look for Map Set #3)
The East Bay Park Service with author, Dr. Beverly Ortiz, have published an
outstanding Ohlone curriculum for 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders.
Unlike many resources, it continues the tribe's story into the modern era.
The supplemental resource page for teachers is a valuable background/perspective tool.
Although I like their Mission one better, this book is an excellent resource for native plants and understanding common themes between all the tribes.
Faber, Gail, and Michele Lasagna. Whispers from the First Californians. Rev. ed. Alamo, CA: Magpie,
1994. Print.
Another difficult but well worth it resource is Nancy Morita's map,
"Wild in the City: The Ecology and Natural History of San Francisco".
Published in 1992, it shows the natural landscape of San Francisco before 1790 (with Ohlone settlements) compared to the modern era.
The only place I've found it is here. (Scroll to the bottom and look for Map Set #3)
The East Bay Park Service with author, Dr. Beverly Ortiz, have published an
outstanding Ohlone curriculum for 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders.
Unlike many resources, it continues the tribe's story into the modern era.
The supplemental resource page for teachers is a valuable background/perspective tool.
Although I like their Mission one better, this book is an excellent resource for native plants and understanding common themes between all the tribes.
Faber, Gail, and Michele Lasagna. Whispers from the First Californians. Rev. ed. Alamo, CA: Magpie,
1994. Print.
Books, Maps, Websites, and Videos
The classic book for adult reading is The Ohlone Way.
Margolin, Malcolm. The Ohlone Way. Illus. Michael Harney. Berkeley, CA: Heyday, 1978. Print.
He also edited another resource book, The Way We Lived.
Margolin, Malcolm, ed. The Way We Lived. Rev. ed. Berkeley: Heyday Books, 1993. Print.
There are many resources that will tell you general tribal information such as what they ate, where they lived, and what they wore. Personally, I found the Mary Null Boulé books a good choice.
Boulé, Mary Null. Ohlone Tribe. Illus. Daniel Liddell. Vol. 14. Vashon, WA: Merryant, 1992. Print.
The San Francisco Public Library has many of the Native California Tribe series by Mary Null Boulé.
Missions books also provide facts about the tribes they impacted.
As mentioned in my Mission Dolores post, there are many grade level appropriate non fiction texts on every California mission.
Another great text is this one about the impact of Europeans on the Native Americans. Not exactly an elementary reading level but could be used as a resource.
Stanley, Jerry. Digger; The Tragic Fate of the California Indians from the Missions to the Gold
Rush. New York: Crown, 1997. Print.
Also with access to a library card, SFPL has a series of social studies fact cards
that also provide overview general information about tribes of California .
The Oakland Museum of California also has on line resources.
Objects from their collection can be searched and viewed digitally here.
Their Picture This site adds more background to the images.
Margolin, Malcolm. The Ohlone Way. Illus. Michael Harney. Berkeley, CA: Heyday, 1978. Print.
He also edited another resource book, The Way We Lived.
Margolin, Malcolm, ed. The Way We Lived. Rev. ed. Berkeley: Heyday Books, 1993. Print.
There are many resources that will tell you general tribal information such as what they ate, where they lived, and what they wore. Personally, I found the Mary Null Boulé books a good choice.
Boulé, Mary Null. Ohlone Tribe. Illus. Daniel Liddell. Vol. 14. Vashon, WA: Merryant, 1992. Print.
The San Francisco Public Library has many of the Native California Tribe series by Mary Null Boulé.
Missions books also provide facts about the tribes they impacted.
As mentioned in my Mission Dolores post, there are many grade level appropriate non fiction texts on every California mission.
Another great text is this one about the impact of Europeans on the Native Americans. Not exactly an elementary reading level but could be used as a resource.
Stanley, Jerry. Digger; The Tragic Fate of the California Indians from the Missions to the Gold
Rush. New York: Crown, 1997. Print.
Also with access to a library card, SFPL has a series of social studies fact cards
that also provide overview general information about tribes of California .
The Oakland Museum of California also has on line resources.
Objects from their collection can be searched and viewed digitally here.
Their Picture This site adds more background to the images.
The San Mateo County History Museum has four different traveling trunks or backpacks. The subjects are Ohlone, Immigrants, a Gold Miner's backpack, and Life in the 1900s. These trunks can be borrowed for a month (for a fee) and contain artifacts and curriculum targeted for 3rd and 4th graders.