English lessons...in a phone txt msg!

"Adrian Finnegan and Janine Dunnigan have set up their own company to harness thumb power.

Besides sending endless messages to pals, children aged eight to 16 will now have a new use for the ubiquitous mobile phone.

By signing up to edu-text, they will be sent a challenging word every day to their phones, complete with its definition and example of it used in everyday context.

'The service can be incorporated into any child's learning programme,' said Adrian, 34. 'Edu-text's strength is that it is such a simple idea. "