Jonas Salk: He Made a Vaccine for Polio… and Didn't Try to Get Rich From It
In the early 1950s, American parents were afraid of polio every summer. Jonas Salk's team worked for years on a vaccine, and in 1955 it was announced: safe and effective. Then he said: Could you patent the sun? Learn five B1 words with the true story of Jonas Salk.
Coming 20 November 2026, 3:00 pm New York time
Transcript
Tap a time to jump to that moment. Highlighted words have a meaning: tap them. Words in bold show today's grammar.
A reporter once asked a famous scientist who his new .
His answer became famous.
But first, the had to work.
This is the story of Jonas Salk.
Welcome to brightlivesenglish.com, where we teach real English using real-life stories.
. is a disease caused by a virus.
It can make people unable to move their arms or legs.
could leave children unable to walk.
. A is a medicine that teaches your body to fight a disease.
He gave the to himself and his family.
. To something means to tell many people about it officially.
The results were on 12 April 1955.
. means that something works well.
The was safe and .
. To something means that it belongs to you.
A reporter asked him who the patent.
Now, one pattern: it took + time + to + verb.
We use it to say how long something needed.
They needed years to make the .
It took years to make the .
Ready? Let's begin.
In the early 1950s, many American parents were afraid of summer.
Every summer, came back.
could leave children unable to walk, and some needed big machines to help them breathe.
Swimming pools closed.
Jonas Salk was born in New York in 1914.
He was the first in his family to go to college, and he started at only fifteen.
He studied medicine, but he did not want to work as a doctor.
He wanted to be a researcher.
In 1947, he started work in a new in Pittsburgh.
Money came from millions of ordinary Americans, who sent coins to the March of Dimes.
Soon his team had one aim: a against .
His idea was to use viruses that had been killed with a chemical.
It took years to make the .
In 1953, he gave the to himself and his family, his wife and their three sons.
In 1954, about 1.8 million children took part in a huge test.
They were called the Pioneers.
It took almost a year to study the results.
Was the safe?
Did it really work?
Hundreds of scientists and reporters waited at a university in Michigan.
The results were on 12 April 1955.
The was safe and .
Across America, church bells rang and factory whistles blew.
People ran into the streets, crying with joy.
It was exactly ten years after the death of President Roosevelt, who had had himself.
That evening, a reporter asked him who the patent.
Salk answered, "Well, the people, I would say."
"There is no patent."
"Could you patent the sun?"
Salk did not get rich from the .
Millions of children were vaccinated, and it took only seven years for cases in America to fall by 97 percent.
Later, he started a research centre in California, and he died in 1995.
Today, cases around the world have fallen by more than 99 percent.
Let's review. could leave children unable to walk.
He gave the to himself and his family.
The results were on 12 April 1955.
The was safe and .
A reporter asked him who the patent.
And remember: it took years to make the .
Jonas Salk's story teaches us: the greatest discoveries can belong to everyone.
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Step 3
Words from the story
Say the word, guess its meaning, then flip the card. Keep the ones you know, and practise the rest again.
Great work, you know every word in this story. Now try the quiz below.
polio noun
a disease caused by a virus that can make people unable to move their arms or legs
“Polio could leave children unable to walk.”
vaccine noun
a medicine that teaches your body to fight a disease
“He gave the vaccine to himself and his family.”
announce verb (passive: was / were announced)
to tell many people about something officially
“The results were announced on 12 April 1955.”
effective adjective
working well; doing what it should
“The vaccine was safe and effective.”
own verb (past: owned)
to have something that belongs to you
“A reporter asked him who owned the patent.”
laboratory noun
a room or building where scientists do experiments (short: lab)
“In 1947, he started work in a new laboratory in Pittsburgh.”
trial noun
a test to see if something is safe and works
“About 1.8 million children took part in the trial.”
injection noun
medicine put into the body with a needle
“The children got an injection at school.”
Grammar in the story
it took + (time) + to + verb
We use it for: to say how long something needed: it took + time + to + verb, or it took + time + for + someone/something + to + verb
- It took years to make the vaccine.
- It took almost a year to study the results.
- It took only seven years for polio cases to fall by 97 percent.
From the story
- It took years to make the vaccine.
- It took almost a year to study the results.
Find it in the story 5 times
Your turn
It years to make the vaccine.
It took almost a year study the results.
It took seven years polio cases to fall by 97 percent.
Step 4
Story Challenge
9 quick rounds: choose, fill the gap, build the sentence and match the words. Answer in a row to build a streak and earn bonus points.
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Take it further
Before you watch: Have you had any vaccines? Do you know a disease that people were afraid of in the past?
After you watch: Write three sentences with it took … to … about things in your life. For example: It took me two years to learn to swim. It takes twenty minutes to walk to my school. It took my family a week to move house.
Think about it: Salk said nobody could own the vaccine, just like nobody can own the sun. Should important medicines belong to everyone? Why, or why not?
