Having fun with different languages

When we returned home from our trip to Tokyo, my then four year old daughter started "speaking" Japanese! She would flip through a book and read out loud, in what she thought was Japanese. She would tell me that the word for table in Japanese is "uhbooka", or something else that sounds Japanese to her. She sounded like she really knew her stuff, I was half tempted to believe her!

After researching the benefits of learning a second language, I'm all about encouraging my childrens' fun with language, no matter how nonsensical!These are just some of the benefits that children receive when learning a second language, according to the Center for Applied Linguistics http://www.cal.org/index.html:
-Has a positive effect on intellectual growth.
-Enriches and enhances a child's mental development.
-Leaves students with more flexibility in thinking, greater sensitivity to language, and a better ear for listening.
-Improves a child's understanding of his/her native language.
-Gives a child the ability to communicate with people s/he would otherwise not have the chance to know.
-Opens the door to other cultures and helps a child understand and appreciate people from other countries.
-Gives a student a head start in language requirements for college.
-Increases job opportunities in many careers where knowing another language is a real asset.So go ahead and play around with another language, it'll be fun!