A native-English-speaking teacher has come up with a novel way of helping pupils overcome their fear of speaking English - he gets them to talk to 'Ming the Minibus'.
It has been 'all aboard' for Ming at Hoi Pa Street Government Primary School in Tsuen Wan for the past month.
Ming is made of a metal frame and canvas, and is 'green': it has no polluting engine, relying for power on a teacher standing inside.
Thomas Beckett, a native-English-speaking teacher who built the minibus with two colleagues six months ago, said he wanted to make the teaching of English more lively in order to encourage shy learners.
It is the off-shoot of the Ming the Minibus series of books he wrote to help children learn to read English.
Mr Beckett said NETs had been trying to encourage children to talk to them during recess in the playground, 'but the same thing happens: the kids run past, shout your name and keep moving'.