Lesson Plans

Each year, the Nashville Symphony develops grade-specific lesson plans to complement the Young People’s Concerts series. By providing lesson plans and resource guides, we strive to give teachers the tools to unlock the concert experience and integrate it into classroom learning. All lesson plans provided by the Nashville Symphony correspond with state and local standards.

 

2026/27 Curriculum Packets

How America Found Its Sound
Grades 5-8

Program Order

 

American Folk    Bluegrass    Blues

Country    Gospel    Jazz 

Motown    Pop    Spirituals

Native American

 

YPC2: Conductor's Spellbook

Lesson plans coming soon.


Lesson plans are organized in alphabetical order by title.

A  |  B |  C  |  D  |  E  |  F  |  G  |  H  |  I  |  J  |  K  |  L  |  M  |  N  |  O  |  P  |  Q  |  R  |  S  |  T  |  U  |  V  |  W  |  X  |  Y  |  Z 

 

A

A Social Story for Ensemble in Schools
All Grade Levels

All About Keyboards
Grades K-3

Lesson #1: The Orchestra & its Sections
Lesson #2: Meet the Keyboards
Lesson #3: What is a Solo?
Lesson #4: The Instruments As Animals
Lesson #5 Seasons of Music: Vivaldi
Lesson #6: Music Tells a Story

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American Originals
Grades 5-8

Lesson #1: Bernstein Presents
Lesson #2: Copland's America
Lesson #3: George Gershwin
Lesson #4: Minimal Art

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B

Beep Beep! The Orchestra Goes on a Field Trip!
Grades K-2

Lesson #1: The Orchestra and its Instruments
Lesson #2: Strings and Percussion
Lesson #3: Brass and Woodwinds

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Brass Bash
Grades K-2

Lesson #1: The Sound of Brass
Lesson #2: Musical Form
Lesson #3: The World of Brass
Lesson #4: Compose Yourself

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C

 

Composers of Hope
Grades 5-8

Lesson #1: What is the Orchestra
Lesson #2: A Nation Through Music
Lesson #3: Amy Beach
Lesson #4: The Civil Rights Movement
Lesson #5: Music and the Holocaust

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Copland's Rodeo
Grades 3-4

Lesson #1: Introduction
Lesson #2: Copland's Rodeo

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D

 

Dancing Through the Centuries
Grades 3-4

Lesson #1: Introduction to the Orchestra
Lesson #2: Carmen
Lesson #3: Copland's Ballet
Lesson #4: Dancing Around the World

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Dia de los Muertos
Grades K-5

Lesson #1: Letters to Loved Ones
Lesson #2: Instructions to the Orchestra

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Don Quixote
Grades 9-12

Lesson #1: The Orchestra and the Sounds of Strauss
Lesson #2: Scene and Sound
Lesson #3: Telling the Story

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E

F

G

H

I

Intro to Orchestra
Grades 5-12

Lesson #1: Introduction to the Orchestra

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Is It A Fiddle or A Violin?
Teacher's Guide

Lesson #1: Instruments and Instrument Families
Lesson #2: Learn About the Fiddle and the Violin
Lesson #3: What Do Fiddles and Violins Sound Like?
Lesson #4: Instrument Parts
Lesson #5: What Is a Museum?
Lesson #6: What Is a Symphony Center?
Lesson #7: Who Works at a Museums and Concert Halls?
Lesson #8: Post-Visit Activities

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J

Jazz Transformations
Grades 3-8

Lesson #1: Introduction to Jazz and Big Band
Lesson #2: The Blues
Lesson #3: Improvisation
Lesson #4: Duke Ellington

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K

L

Lunar New Year
Grades 4-8

Lesson #1: The Phases of the Moon
Lesson #2: Instruments of the Orchestra

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M

Meet the Brass Family
Grades 4-8

Meet the Percussion Family
Grades K-2

Lesson #1: The Percussion Family
Lesson #2: Everyday Percussion

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Meet the String Family
Grades 4-8

Meet the Woodwind Family
Grades 4-8

Montgomery Variations
Grades 3-4

Lesson #2: Spirituals
Lesson #3: Margaret Bonds and MLK

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N

O

P

Peter and the Wolf
Grades K-2

Lesson #1: Introduction to the Orchestra
Lesson #2: Meet Each Character of the Orchestra
Lesson #3: Music Tells a Story: Chasqui
Lesson #4: Music Tells a Story: Peter and the Wolf

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Peter and the Wolf
Grades 3-4

Lesson #1: Orchestra and Sounds
Lesson #2: Stories Through Sounds
Lesson #3: Unlabled

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Picture This: Musical Imagery
Grades 5-8

Lesson #1: Imagine This
Lesson #2: What's Your Story?
Lesson #3: Compose This

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Q

R

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Grades 5-8

Lesson #1: Recycle- (Part 1), What is Music?
Lesson #2: Recycle- (Part 2) "Dies Irae" Recycled
Lesson #3: Reduce- Chamber Music: The Orchestra Reduced
Lesson #4: Reuse- The Transcription: Renewing Older Material

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S

Sound Lab with the Symphony
Grades 5-8

Lesson #1: Introduction to the Orchestra
Lesson #2: Musical Styles
Lesson #3: The Physics of the Strings Family
Lesson #4: Music and Technology

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String Fling 
Grades K-2

Lesson #1: Meet the String Family
Lesson #2: Make Some Noise!
Lesson #3: Listen for It

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Swan Lake
Grades 3-4

Lesson #1: Learning to Swim
Lesson #2: Swam Lake
Lesson #3: Gone Fishing

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Symphony in Space
Grades 3-4

Lesson #1: The Orchestra and its Instruments
Lesson #2: Tempo
Lesson #3: Dynamics

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T

The Earth - An HD Odyssey
Grades 9-12

The Firebird Suite
Grades 3-4

Lesson #1: Introduction to the Orchestra
Lesson #2: Composing Music
Lesson #3: Mythical Madness

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The Magic of Music and Film
Grades 6-12

Lesson #1 Introduction to the Orchestra: Grades 5-8
Lesson #1 Introduction to the Orchestra: Grades 9-12

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The Power of Percussion
Grades K-2

Lesson #1: What is Sound?
Lesson #2: The Percussion Family
Lesson #3: Everyday Perussion

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U

V

W

Women in Classical Music
Grades 5-12

Lesson #1: Introduction to the Orchestra
Lesson #2: Clara Chumann and Fanny Mendelssohn
Lesson #3: Amy Beach: Perfromer, Composer, Leader
Lesson #4: Florence Price: Embracing Heritage

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Wonderful Woodwinds
Grades K-2

Lesson #1: Wonderful Woodwinds
Lesson #2: Wonderful Woodwinds
Lesson #3: Wonderful Woodwinds

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Words, Story, and Music
Grades 3-4

Lesson #1: Introduction to the Orchestra
Lesson #2: Metered Verse
Lesson #3: Repetition

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X

Y

 

Your Composition, Your Story
Grades 5-12

Lesson #1: Composing a Melody
Mini Lesson #2: Improvisation is Composition
Mini Lesson #3: Counterpoint: Composing Harmony

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Z

 

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