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Santa Monica's Tongva Park features more than six acres of walking paths, sculptures, and native plants. The six-acre expanse is one of more than a dozen landmarks identified by the San Gabriel Band of Mission Indians.
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LAist operates within the homelands of the Gabrielino Tongva people. We collected resources for adults who want to learn more about California’s indigenous people— and now, a list of family-friendly places to visit to deepen your understanding of our region’s original stewards.
For grown-ups: “If parents really want to be diligent about it, they have to educate themselves first,” said Greg Castro, the culture director for the Association of Ramaytush Ohlone, a Northern California tribe. “Then go along that same path with their kids.” UCLA’s digital storytelling project, Mapping Indigenous LA, is a good place to start.
Read together: The Los Angeles Public Library curated Native American themed reading lists for children and teens. LAist is also a fan of Waa’aka’: The Bird Who Fell in Love with the Sun. Cindi M. Alvitre tells the Tongva creation story with help from beautiful illustrations by Carly Lake.
Take a field trip: University High School sits on the site of a Tongva village near a spring thought to be continuously inhabited for more than 8,000 years. Kuruvungna Village Springs is open and free to visit on the first Saturday of the month from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.
Read more ... for a big list of opportunities.
If you attend an LAist event or listen to one of our podcasts, you’ll hear an acknowledgement that we operate within the homelands of the Gabrielino Tongva people. The tribe is one of many that has lived on and tended the land now called California.
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Where to take a family-friendly field trip to learn more about LA’s original, Indigenous stewards
“We recognize the painful history of displacement, settler colonialism, and erasure of the People, their language, including place names, and their sovereignty,” our statement reads.
We’ve also got resources for adults, but not a whole lot of kid-friendly ways to learn more about the original stewards of Southern California and today’s Indigenous communities.
“If parents really want to be diligent about it, they have to educate themselves first,” said Gregg Castro, the culture director for the Association of Ramaytush Ohlone, a Northern California tribe. “Then go along that same path with their kids.”
Castro, who is also T’rowt’raahl Salinan and Rumsien, suggested a locally produced documentary series “Tending the Wild,” which explores how Indigenous knowledge of plant and animal life has shaped the environment.
UCLA’s digital storytelling project Mapping Indigenous LA illuminates the lives of the original inhabitants of the Los Angeles Basin as well as those who have relocated and migrated here, including Pacific Islanders and the Indigenous diaspora of Latin America.
Tips for starting conversations with kids
Terms like “settler colonialism” and “displacement” might not be in young kids’ vocabulary yet, but the concepts of fairness and exclusion become clear at a young age.
Once you’ve done the homework, here are a few family-friendly places to explore, but keep in mind, much of the area we now live in was once someone else’s home.
“Let the sun shine on you, let leaves fall on you,” Castro said. “Let flies and critters buzz around you and understand that you're only part of it, not the apex of it.”
Read Native stories
The Los Angeles Public Library curated Native American themed reading lists for children and teens.
Cindi M. Alvitre tells the Tongva creation story in "Waa’aka’: The Bird Who Fell in Love with the Sun."
The Fernandeño Tataviam Band of Mission Indians council of elders offers this guidance for visiting their homelands and we think it applies to any space you might explore on this list.
“Understand that the land beneath you contains thousands of years of our DNA. Be respectful of our Mother land and all her beings … We ask that you do not disturb our animal relatives, contaminate our sacred waters, or leave trash or belongings on our homelands during your visit.”
The Autry contains one of the country's largest collections of Indigenous art and artifacts.
Hours: Tuesday - Friday 10 a.m.– 4 p.m., Saturday - Sunday 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Closed on several major holidays.
Admission:
Adults: $18
Discounts: Seniors and students ($14), children ages 3-12 ($8)
Free for: members; active-duty U.S. military and veterans; children age 2 and under; visitors on Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons (if you pre-register).
The museum was created after Chumash cultural sites were discovered in the area now known as Oakbrook Park in the 1980s. The center also hosts guided tours on the last Saturday of the month and workshops at varying times.
University High School sits on the site of a Tongva village near a spring thought to be continuously inhabited for more than 8,000 years. The Gabrielino-Tongva Springs Foundation restored the site in recent years and maintains the cultural center there now.
This community organization hosts presentations and nature walks throughout Southern California with the goal of raising Native American representation in the outdoors. Recent events included outings to Ernest E. Debs and San Gabriel River Parks.
Locations and hours: Vary by event
Coastal Live Oak tree (Quercus agrifolia) are one of the native plants found in Sycamore Canyon. The Chumash harvested, dried and created a flour with their acorns.
Nearby Sycamore Canyon was part of a Chumash trade route for many years. The Culture Center hosts workshops, presentations, and art shows. You can also picnic and hike the nearby trails throughout the year.
Address: Parking at N 34.1569 W -118.9733, Via Goleta and Lynn Road, Newbury Park, CA, 91320
Mojave Desert homesteader Howard Arden Edwards built the chalet-style building that now houses the museum in 1928. There are more than 3,000 objects that represent the American Indian cultures of the Great Basin. Can’t make the drive? There are also virtual museum tours hosted by tribal members with sign language interpretation.
Santa Monica's Tongva Park features more than six acres of walking paths, sculptures, and native plants. The six-acre expanse is one of more than a dozen landmarks identified by the San Gabriel Band of Mission Indians.
“There are all these beautiful hidden secrets everywhere,” Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians public relations director Kate Anderson told Condé Nast Traveler. “All culture is not for tourism, but a lot is.”
Videos and lesson plans created and vetted by educators, tribal scholars and native activists.
LAist pick: This middle school lesson teaches students about primary and secondary sources (we love media literacy!) through the lens of the Miwok Indians, but could be adapted to talk about other communities.
Enrollment in the nation’s workshops and camps is limited to Native American youth in L.A. County, but anyone can purchase this workbook that introduces the Fernandeño Tataviam language through stories, colors, animals, and numbers.
Early childhood reporter Elly Yu contributed to this story.
