I've got a five years old with expressive language delays (bi-lingual environment) on therapy. She repeats some words, which I thought to be delayed echolalia. Then I read that echolalia is the MEANINGLESS delayed repetition and not in context. Is that correct?
Are these examples delayed echolalia or do toddlers do this during normal language development? I noticed this behaviour is fading out as she builds up her own expressive language.
EX1) When she shows me her school work, she repeats phrases the teacher has probably told her: "show this to your mum", "good painting". Or she makes a sum and goes like“good counting”.
EX2) When driving out from a multi-storey car park, I once asked her: "what is the next floor?" as she was reading the floor numbers on the building columns. Then, for the next 5 times we were back at the SAME car park she repeats my question "what is the next floor?" then she answers the numbers herself. But she never asked that when not on the same spot I made her that question originally.
EX3) Repeating lines from cartoons when playing with characters/toys from that same cartoons.
EX4) Once I said when opening jigsaw puzzle box: "start from the edges". Then for the next 2 or 3 times she opens a box of a jigsaw she says “start from the edges”
EX5) This one really worries me: since started talking, frequently she asks "what is this?" for things she already knows. If don’t answer her, she answers herself correctly anyway. But she likes us to answer her, even though she knows it