Home »
Echolalia……….What It Is and What It Means
Echolalia…What It Is and What It Means
Echolalia is repeating or “echoing” what another person has said. Children who are echolalic imitate what they have heard someone say in everyday life, lines they’ve listened to from a book, lyrics to a song, or a script from a show or movie. Professionals most often characterize children as “echolalic” when many of the words or phrases a child uses seem to be repetitions from a previous activity rather than new utterances a child comes up with on their own.
Children with echolalia use what many parents describe as “more advanced language” than they can typically generate. For example, a toddler who is exhibiting echolalia can quote long segments from a favorite TV show or sing an entire song word for word, but he can’t ask for milk when he needs it or answer a question his dad asks him. Even though this child “talks,” since he can technically say lots of words, he doesn’t seem to completely understand what he’s saying. In essence, he’s just repeating words without really being able to “use” them.
Echolalia is one of the characteristics sometimes noted in children with autism. In fact, researchers have found that up to 85% of people with autism who are verbal exhibit echolalia in some form. The silver lining in this is that echolalia is actually a positive sign that children with autism may eventually be able to learn to use language to communicate.
Echolalia is also a part of normal language development. This phase begins around 18 months of age when a child has mastered imitating words and is just beginning to imitate phrases. Experts tell us that echolalia peaks around 30 months of age, and declines significantly by the time a toddler turns three. This coincides with a child becoming conversational and truly beginning to talk on his own, generating his own original thoughts, asking new questions, and responding to questions appropriately.
In children with autism, echolalia occurs with greater frequency and lasts for a longer period of time than it does in children with typically developing language. For example, a child with typically developing language may be able to quote a few phrases from a favorite TV show, sing a song, or learn to count to ten by rote. However, he doesn’t do this repetitively several times a day, and when he does do this, it seems to “fit” what’s happened rather than leaving adults or other children around him wondering, “Okay…what’s that about?”
Children with motor planning issues, or apraxia, also can “get stuck” in this phase for a couple of different reasons. First of all, children with apraxia begin speech therapy with very poor imitation skills. Once they learn how to repeat what they’ve heard, they seem to want to hang onto this phase for a very long time. Secondly, repeating may become the “motor plan” they learn best, and it may be easier for some of these children to map a previously rehearsed message than to come up with a new one. (Although it is true with apraxia that children can come up with spontaneous utterances better than imitated ones, this is not usually the case once they have been in therapy for a while. It may be easier to pull out a tried-and-true phrase or sentence than learn a whole new one.)
Echolalia is classified as immediate echolalia or delayed echolalia.
Immediate echolalia is the repetition of words or phrases that occur immediately or very soon after the original words are spoken. An example of immediate echolalia is the child who repeats a question such as, “Do you want some juice?” rather than responding yes or no.
Delayed echolalia is the repetition of words or phrases that are echoed after the fact, even hours, days, weeks, or months later. An example of delayed echolalia is a child who might sing, “Happy Birthday” when someone new enters her home.
Echolalia can also include not only the words spoken, but the exact imitation of a person’s inflection, tone of voice, and volume.
Professionals used to view echolalia as something that should be eliminated. However, current researchers tell us that many times echolalic speech can serve a purpose for children with autism. For example, a child who wants to go outside may say to his mother, “Let’s put your shoes on,” as his way of requesting this activity since he’s heard his mother say this many times just before he gets to leave the house. A child may say, “Want me to hold you?” when he’s crying or “It’s okay, Ben,” when he’s upset since his parents have said this to him in this context over and over again.
I’ll give you another real-life example. A darling little boy on my caseload last Christmas called Santa Claus “It’s Santa,” all season long because the first time his mother taught him this word, she declared enthusiastically, “It’s Santa!” He lifted the whole phrase and his mother’s elevated and joyful tone of voice as this character’s name. When his teacher at preschool asked him, “Who’s that?” it was appropriate for him to respond in this way, but during a speech therapy session when I gave him a choice for play by asking, “Do you want Santa or this reindeer?” and he replied, “It’s Santa,” it didn’t make much sense.
In these cases echolalia is representative of the way these children process information. They learn in “chunks” without processing meanings of individual words. This learning style is called a “gestalt” style of language acquisition. Children who learn this way also process the sensory and emotional components of the event. In the previous example with Santa, the little boy processed “It’s” as a part of Santa’s name, along with the enthusiasm in his mother’s voice. Every time he said this, he repeated it in just the way she originally said it to him, beginning shortly after Thanksgiving and lasting well into January.
Sometimes echolalia does not serve an identifiable purpose. For example, consider the child who repeats every line from the book “Go Dog Go” for no apparent reason while in the grocery store. There’s no dog in sight and no link to associating this book, but she recites it while riding in the cart while her mother selects food.
I try to teach parents with children who seem to be stuck in echolalia to look at this as an opportunity for us to know exactly what he or she is having difficulty learning. Echolalia can serve a purpose for us. For example, the child who is walking around aimlessly quoting a movie or book may need help in finding an appropriate activity, or he may be feeling stressed or anxious and use this routine to calm himself. A child who asks her mother, “Do you want a cookie?” needs help in learning to initiate requests in a more appropriate way. A child who repeats a question needs help learning the meaning of the words so he can accurately process the question, or he may need specific cues to learn exactly how to answer. A child who repeats, “Good job (her own name)” needs to learn a declarative phrase such as, “I did it!” A child who repeats his brother’s words may just be trying to take a turn in conversation and doesn’t know what else to say.
By taking a moment to determine if the echolalic utterance serves a purpose, discovering what the child’s intent is, and then finding ways to teach your child what he should say in this context, you’ll be much more effective than trying to eliminate echolalia.
Look for a follow-up article this week for more specific ideas to work on functional language for children with echolalia at home and during speech therapy sessions. Laura
If you’d like more information about echolalia, you can find it in my course Is It Autism? Recognizing and Treating Toddlers and Preschoolers with Red Flags for ASD.
Get My Free eBook
A Parent's Guide to Understanding Speech Language Development
Get real-time clinical coaching and Q&A for professionals and parents who want practical answers, clearer next steps, and direct access to Laura’s expertise.
Recent Posts
Teach Me To Talk Testimonials
Happy Therapists, Teachers, Parents & Children
"Laura, I am a long time follower. You have mentored me from a distance for many years. I've watched many of your courses and purchased 5-6 of your books. I just wanted to take a moment as a sister in Christ to say- --- Thank you!! I'm in my 33rd year as an SLP and still love it! I work in the public schools and have grown my skills along the way with your help. Thank you thank you thank you and, Many blessings to you and your daughter!!!"
Camille, SLP
"Laura,
Three years ago, my then 2year old (adopted) was only saying two words - momma and boat. We had been doing speech therapy for 6 months, and he loved to play, but he was entirely uninterested in talking. A dear friend who is a SLP recommended I look you up online. Since then, I've read your emails, listened to hours of your podcasts, ordered two of your therapy manuals, and watched many of your videos.
My now 5year old tells elaborate stories now, and if you didn't know his background, you would never guess. And thanks to the hours that I have spent with your guidance, when our next son, now a 2.5yr old, didn't talk (after a craniotomy), I had tools to get started with him. His speech has just taken off in the last month or so.
Thank you so much for all that you do to help parents facilitate speech therapy with their kiddos. And thank you for your gentle, confident living of your faith.
God's blessings."
Rachel (mom to 3 boys in a now very noisy house!)
"Hi Laura!
I became an SLP in 2004 and you were my first SLP crush! I was so fortunate to have a supportive school district that allowed me to purchase your videos and the Teach Me to Talk handbook. Not only was the handbook a life saver (I literally called it my Bible lol), but the videos, oh how the videos changed my life, and the lives of the families I worked with! I remember telling my families that they'd love you, not only because you spoke directly to families, jargon free, but also because of your southern dialect. You speak directly and clearly, but never rushed and never over anyone's head, something I highly value. I told families that I could listen to you read the phone book and it would capture my attention. You see, I'm from Ohio where we don't get a whole lot of diversity and cool dialects, so listening to you talk about my favorite topics was a breath of fresh air. So many of us think talking over people's heads makes us more credible or whatever, but now that I've been around over 20 years, I can say you had it right all along. Southern speech included 😊"
Heather Welling, M.A., CCC-SLP, Early Intervention in Summit County, OH
"I found the modality checklists to be invaluable. I had something in hand that I can use right off the printer."
Elizabeth, SLP
"LOVED this program! It was jam-packed with a ton of information that will take time to incorporate into therapy sessions. (Not only is the child learning new skills, so am I as a therapist!) I've known about strength-based therapy and have done it, but not to the extent and to the organization offered in this training. I am looking forward to seeing how my therapy changes and how my little ones progress by using this program."
Leah, SLP
"This program was extremely beneficial for use in my practice. All of the information, handouts and techniques that were presented were amazing. Easy to follow along. I liked that it was broken up into different videos/sections."
Michele, SLP
"Thank you for including real-life stories and anecdotes from your own practice. Very helpful."
Ellen, SLP
"I loved the clear strengths guidance, and the reminder not to push too hard in therapy!"
Elizabeth, SLP
"The course was very helpful and practical. I will certainly apply this approach to children on my caseload. I kept thinking about children that already "graduated" from EI and wish I had this knowledge when I still had them on my caseload. (Although I did put a lot of other Teach Me to Talk information into practice!)"
Heidi, SLP
"I appreciated learning the 7 C's of Communication, which seemed to include, (restated/reorganized/ summarized) information from '11 Skills Toddlers Master Before Words Emerge', which I have successfully used for years now (Thank you so much!!!!). I appreciated the additional information included to better assist toddlers with ASD since that population, unfortunately, continues to rise. I also appreciated the focus on regulating children and the need to keep them regulated, since dysregulation and sensory impairment in toddlers is also rising. These are areas I did not study in grad school. I appreciate the worksheets we can provide for parents to identify strengths and how to use these strengths more effectively in treatment. Thank you again, for your essential contribution to our field. p.s. You and Macy are precious!! God bless you both!"
"I am one of those therapists who you pointed out works on the wrong things. ARH!! What a slap in the face, but in a good way, because it was a much needed wake up call. I've hated my job lately and now I know why. Thank you for the clarity."
Susan, SLP
"Dear Ms. Laura and sweet Macy, I just purchased the new course and wanted to say THANK YOU! I would have definitely expected such cutting-edge information to come from you! I am part of several message boards for parents of autistic children, and we parents are just so tired of being told by professionals what our children can't or will never do. And really, what is the point of doing that? How does that help at all? Except to make the parent miserable and feel like there is no point in trying to help their child?...The tone of the course is great (such positivity), and Macy is such a delight! She is such a wonderful addition to Teach me to Talk."
Ann, SLP
“I loved the handouts to share with parents to help them understand how utilizing their child's strengths and interests is the best way to facilitate their child's communication abilities.”
Colleen, SLP
“The most beneficial part of the program is the strengths survey, as well as the treatment toys and activities that correspond to each strength. There was no part of the program that I did not feel was beneficial.”
Natalie, SLP
"I LOVED the energy of this course! I also appreciated the research facts I learned I can spit out to other professionals and parents. The best part was how characteristics of ASD were divided into strengths and therapy activities... so if I have a visually inspecting kid, I know I can go into my pdf and find out what activities I should target based on that characteristic... this really did improve how I think about therapy."
Kelsey, SLP
"I feel so much more at ease now having a huuuuuge packet of therapy ideas and a framework for organizing my therapy and having an actual PLAN instead of just "following the child's lead" while trying to figure out how to work in the goals. The way the content was explained was easy to follow and the handouts are excellent."
A, SLP
“I found identifying a child's strength helped me to consolidate my previous knowledge and experience. I feel I have a clear method to identify a child's strength and to build their strengths into sessions plans to help achieve their set goals.”
Christine, SLP
"Wow, this course was by far my favorite course I have taken in a long time! I have been lately feeling "stuck" with a few of my autistic toddler clients, and this course provided clear and helpful tools and strategies to best support our clients while also being affirming. I loved all of the ideas that were provided as well as the Strengths Survey – I can't wait to implement all of these wonderful things!"
Isabel, SLP
“The most beneficial part of the course was the handouts to share with parents and ALL the therapy ideas!! I've always felt that we focus on the 10% a kiddo can't do instead of the 90% Can Do. I have always tried to do this in my therapy sessions. Now I have evidenced material for support!!!!!”
Suzanne, SLP
“Liked systematic handouts to use to help with assessment and diagnostic therapy. Enjoyed hearing examples of each strength domain. Great review and great handouts to be able to share with families. The course was well organized and the content is much needed as an EI therapist.”
Terri, SLP
“This was a fresh new philosophy and a comprehensive approach with a new concept for successfully working with children with Autism. Before this ,the very structured, compliance teaching model which has been utilized by many therapists using comply-reward, noncompliance -punish or a with-hold philosophy. Children with Autism became prompt-.dependent with this method. These Children couldn't initiate language or make a plan to move on their own. They had to wait to be prompted to act or to respond and never spoke spontaneously on their own. I and many of my SLP colleagues have always believed in play therapy and giving the child choices to play works best. It is very important that Parents should hear about this strategy! Thank you Laura and Macy for doing the evidence-based research and putting this new concept into words!!”
Teresa, SLP
“This was a wonderful, easy to understand course with lots of great materials. Exactly what the fabulous Laura Mize is known for!”
F, SLP
"I am an autism mom, and I bought your books and listened to several podcast episodes over the last few years. I believe your teach me to talk and autism workbook were one of the number one tools in giving me to guidance to help my son. Thank you!"
Brittni
"I just want to thank you for the invaluable information you’ve given me in helping my grandson to talk (which I have passed on to his parents). We’ve ve learned patience, appropriate expectations, and fun and effective strategies that we had found no where else. He is exploding with conversation! Sometimes I struggle to interpret his articulation, but all I have to do is say, “Show me”, and he’s excited to do so. He and I both want so badly to communicate with each other, and your strategies have made it so much easier and non-threatening. Once again, I thank you from the bottom of my heart."
Stacey
"My little guy is taking off like a rocket!! We’ve been working through your Autism Workbook for a few months and he has had an explosion of skills develop. YOU are AMAZING! THANK YOU!" Laura Q, Mom
"Dear Laura Mize and Team,
Thank you so much for all your hard work and publishing books! Our 17-month-old toddler suddenly exploded into speaking and imitating everybody's gestures and sounds, just a week or two after we 'completed' all activities that are listed under 11 pre-linguistic skills! Your method really works!"
Grateful customer.
"Hi Laura!
I absolutely LOVE all of your workbooks, especially your Autism Workbook. Starting with Social Games has been a game changer for many of my littles with ASD and their families. It's been the best way for them to finally connect and sustain shared attention and engagement, leading to longer social interactions, through play!"
Jodie, Dev, Therapist
"Hi Ms. Laura,
Thank you so much for the videos you have posted on your youtube channel. They are so direct, informative, and helpful. Thank you for being a resource for me to become a better therapist."
Dianne
