Explain that California's Native nations continue today as living communities with their own governments and traditions, and describe at least one way a nation maintains its culture in the present.
California's Native nations are not only a story from long ago -- they are real communities today. Many California Native nations are officially recognized by the state or the federal government, and many have their own tribal governments, some with written constitutions, that make decisions for their own people, somewhat similar to how a city or state government works, which you will study later this year.
It is honest, and important, to say that history also includes hard chapters: as settlers arrived, many Native nations lost land and access to resources they had relied on for thousands of years, which was often unfair and deeply difficult. Even so, California's Native nations have persisted. Today, many nations run cultural centers and museums, teach basket weaving and other traditional skills, and work hard to keep their own languages alive by teaching them to children, since a language that stops being spoken becomes very difficult to bring back.
Mastery looks like: They can state that California's Native nations continue today and describe at least one real way a nation maintains its government or culture in the present.
Common stumbles: Talking about Native nations only in the past tense, as if they no longer exist today.