Repeating Words or Phrases
Many children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) repeat other people’s words or sentences. This is termed as echolalia. Teachers and parents struggle the most as they are the ones spending maximum amount of time with the child. Echolalia is a unique type of speech commonly seen in autistic children in their early age. Doctor uses it as a diagnostic tool for ASD.
When children do the repetition immediately after hearing them, it’s known as immediate echolalia. When they do repetition after a delay, it’s known as delayed echolalia. Delayed echolalia may be unusual for surrounding people as words may seem out of context. While it might be hard to comprehend what a child is trying to say when he or she uses echolalia but after a while, his parents and teachers start getting an idea or meaning behind his words.