A SIMPLE computer game can dramatically increase the listening skills of young children by teaching them to distinguish between sounds, it was claimed last night.

The game is said to enable children to progress by the equivalent of two years in just a few weeks.

Phonomena was devised by Professor David Moore at the University of Oxford as an aid for children with language problems.

But the latest trials show it can help any child, New Scientist magazine reported.

Professor Moore believes that, just as catching a ball improves hand-to-eye co-ordination, playing Phonomena can enhance general language ability.

The game is supposed to improve a child's ability to distinguish between different phonemes, the basic sounds that form the building blocks of language.

Up to a fifth of all children are thought to have problems hearing the differences between some sounds.

In the game, children have to distinguish between pairs of phonemes such as the "i" sound in the word "bit" and the "e" from "bet".

They are played one phoneme followed by two more examples and asked which one matches the first sound.

As the game progresses, the phonemes are gradually "morphed" to make them more and more similar and difficult to tell apart.

In the latest trials, 18 children aged eight to 10 played the game three times a week for three weeks.

Their language abilities were compared before andafterwards.

The team found a dramatic improvement in the group, whose listening skill equivalent ages were raised an average of 2.4 years compared with 12 children who did not play the game.

Professor Moore said computer games such as Phonomena that engage with key sensory skills, could make a big difference in education.

Even normal computer games had been shown to improve visual skills.

"In future, every child's dream of homework consisting of hours spent playing computer games may well become a reality," added Professor Moore.

"It's a bit like teaching someone to catch a ball. Sensory performance is no different from motor performance.

"As far as we know, the neural processes driving them both are the same."