brightlivesenglish.com/lessons/togo-the-serum-run/
45-minute lesson plan
| Time | Stage | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| 0–3′ | Warm-up | Ask the class: “Have you ever seen a dog sled? Why do you think dogs, not planes, carried medicine in 1925?” Let a few students answer. |
| 3–11′ | Words | Pre-teach the 5 words with the flashcards: serum, relay, musher, sled, blizzard. Say each word, show the meaning, and ask for a quick example. |
| 11–18′ | Video | Play the video (5:08). Students follow the transcript. Play it a second time if needed. |
| 18–26′ | Comprehension | Worksheet C (or the online Story Challenge): check answers together. Ask “How do you know?” |
| 26–34′ | Grammar | while + past continuous, past simple: a longer action, and something that happened during it. Show “While the town was waiting, the dogs ran.”, then do worksheet E together. |
| 34–42′ | Worksheet | Students do worksheet A, B and D alone or in pairs. Check with the answer key. |
| 42–45′ | Speaking | In pairs: “Balto became famous, but many people say Togo did the hardest work. Who does important work quietly in your life?” |
Homework: students finish the lesson online (flashcards + Story Challenge). With your class link, you see who finished.
Words and grammar
- serum (noun): a medicine made from blood that fights a disease. “The serum was more than 1,000 kilometres away.”
- relay (noun): a race or job where one team takes over from another. “About twenty mushers carried the serum in a relay.”
- musher (noun): a person who drives a team of dogs. “Leonhard Seppala was a champion musher.”
- sled (noun): a vehicle that slides over snow, pulled by dogs. “Togo led the dogs that pulled Seppala's sled.”
- blizzard (noun): a storm with strong winds and a lot of snow. “Near Nome, a blizzard turned over Gunnar Kaasen's sled.”
Grammar: while + past continuous, past simple — a longer action, and something that happened during it. “While the town was waiting, the dogs ran.”
Discussion questions
- Balto became famous, but many people say Togo did the hardest work. Who does important work quietly in your life?
- What was the hardest moment in Togo's story? What did Togo do?
- Make two sentences about your own life with “while + past continuous, past simple”. (From the story: “While the town was waiting, the dogs ran.”)
Student worksheet
A Match the words to their meanings
- serum (noun)
- relay (noun)
- musher (noun)
- sled (noun)
- blizzard (noun)
- diphtheria (noun)
- husky (noun)
- telegraph (noun)
- a storm with strong winds and a lot of snow
- a strong dog with thick fur that pulls sleds
- a medicine made from blood that fights a disease
- a person who drives a team of dogs
- a serious disease of the throat that spreads easily
- an old way of sending messages along wires
- a vehicle that slides over snow, pulled by dogs
- a race or job where one team takes over from another
B Complete the sentences from the story
telegraph · serum · blizzard · relay · diphtheria · sled · musher · husky
- Leonhard Seppala was a champion .
- In 1925, spread in Nome.
- Near Nome, a turned over Gunnar Kaasen's sled.
- About twenty mushers carried the serum in a .
- The was more than 1,000 kilometres away.
- Togo led the dogs that pulled Seppala's .
- Togo was a Siberian .
- The doctor sent a message for help.
C Did you understand?
- Planes carried the medicine to Nome.True / False
- How old was Togo during the serum run?
- 12
- 2
- 6
- 20
- Which way did Seppala take with the serum?
- Straight across the frozen sea
- Around the coast
- By train
- By plane
- The ice they had crossed broke up while the team was resting.True / False
- How far did Togo run in all?
- About 420 kilometres
- About 20 kilometres
- About 85 kilometres
- About 2,000 kilometres
D Put the words in order
- dogs / the / waiting / the / ran / town / was / While
E Grammar: while + past continuous, past simple
We use it for a longer action, and something that happened during it. While I was cooking, the phone rang. · While they were sleeping, it snowed.
Example from the story: While the town was waiting, the dogs ran.
- While the team on the shore, the ice broke up. (was resting / were resting / is resting)
- While the town was waiting, the dogs . (ran / were run / run)
- I was reading, my brother came home. (While / During / Then)
F Your turn
Retell Togo's story in 5–6 sentences. Use at least three words from exercise A.
Answer key
A. 1c 2h 3d 4g 5a 6e 7b 8f
B. 1 musher · 2 diphtheria · 3 blizzard · 4 relay · 5 serum · 6 sled · 7 husky · 8 telegraph
C. 1 False · 2 a · 3 a · 4 True · 5 a
D. 1 While the town was waiting the dogs ran.
E. 1 was resting · 2 ran · 3 While
Transcript
In January 1925, children in a small town in Alaska were getting sick.
The medicine was more than 1,000 kilometres away, and planes could not fly in the cold.
So the dogs ran.
This is the story of Togo.
Welcome to brightlivesenglish.com, where we teach real English using real-life stories.
Serum. A serum is a medicine made from blood that fights a disease.
The serum was more than 1,000 kilometres away.
Relay. A relay is a race or a job where one team takes over from another.
About twenty mushers carried the serum in a relay.
Musher. A musher is a person who drives a team of dogs.
Leonhard Seppala was a champion musher.
Sled. A sled is a vehicle that slides over snow, pulled by dogs.
Togo led the dogs that pulled Seppala's sled.
Blizzard. A blizzard is a storm with strong winds and a lot of snow.
Near Nome, a blizzard turned over Gunnar Kaasen's sled.
Now, one pattern: while plus the past continuous.
We use it for something that was happening when something else happened.
The town was waiting.
The dogs ran.
While the town was waiting, the dogs ran.
Ready? Let's begin.
In January 1925, the only doctor in Nome, Alaska, found diphtheria, a deadly disease that is most dangerous for children.
His old medicine was almost useless.
While the children were getting sicker, he sent messages asking for help.
Ice had closed the port for the winter.
The serum was more than 1,000 kilometres away.
The few planes in Alaska had open seats, and it was far too cold to fly.
So the serum went by railway to a town called Nenana.
About twenty mushers carried the serum in a relay.
More than 150 dogs pulled their sleds, night and day.
It was so cold that one musher's hands froze to his sled.
Leonhard Seppala was a champion musher.
His lead dog was Togo, a 12-year-old husky.
As a puppy, Togo was so naughty that Seppala gave him away.
But Togo jumped through a window and ran back home.
Togo led the dogs that pulled Seppala's sled.
They raced about 270 kilometres east from Nome to meet the serum.
But nobody could tell Seppala that the relay was going faster than planned.
Near a village called Shaktoolik, he almost raced past another musher, who shouted, "The serum! I have it here!"
To save time, Seppala chose the short way back, straight across the frozen sea.
The ice was rough, and in places it was starting to break.
It was getting dark, and a strong wind was blowing.
On the ice, Seppala could hardly see.
He had to trust Togo to find the way.
For hours, Togo led the team across the cracking ice.
At last, they reached the shore.
While the team was resting at a roadhouse on the shore, the storm broke up the ice behind them.
The next day, they crossed the hills and gave the serum to the next musher.
In all, Togo ran about 420 kilometres, the longest part of the relay.
The last musher was Gunnar Kaasen.
Near Nome, a blizzard turned over Gunnar Kaasen's sled.
He found the serum in the snow with his bare hands, and his lead dog, Balto, led the team on.
About five and a half days after it left Nenana, the serum reached Nome.
While the town was waiting, the dogs ran.
The serum was frozen, but not one bottle was broken, and by noon it was ready to use.
Balto became famous, and a statue of him went up in New York.
But many people say that Togo did the longest and hardest part.
In 2011, "Time" magazine put him on its list of the most heroic animals.
Let's review. The serum was more than 1,000 kilometres away.
About twenty mushers carried the serum in a relay.
Leonhard Seppala was a champion musher.
Togo led the dogs that pulled Seppala's sled.
Near Nome, a blizzard turned over Gunnar Kaasen's sled.
And remember: while the town was waiting, the dogs ran.
Togo's story teaches us: the real hero is not always the famous one.
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