Autism, glue ear, echolalia v scripting

[goldenK]

Hi everyone,
I don’t really know what I’m asking really because deep down I know the answer. It’s a long post if anyone wants to read 🤞🏼

My little boy is 2 years 4 months. I started having suspicions of him being autistic when he was around 18 months.

Around this age He had been unwell quite a few times from being quite young (no ear infections) but long periods of coughs / colds/ temperatures etc.

He had a big handful of words but pronounced most of them them incorrectly. Words such such as pear, star, daddy, peppa, teddy, cheese, no, ta, pig.. quite a few more actually… but a lot said in the wrong pitch but almost always like he was deaf (if you know what I mean). He’d had animal noises since being 12 months. He imitated me in both making noises and pulling faces and repeating words when he could, had always loved kisses and cuddles. Smiled, cooed & laughed on time. Always loved playing peekaboo from a young age, clapped and did the actions to twinkle twinkle from being a small baby. But now he’s older I look back and realise he didn’t really babble properly until 10 months, pointed around 12 months on his own terms but only when he could be bothered, properly started pointing at 15 months but not for shared attention (not sure when that started that but he does do it a lot now) and waving., but again on his terms really. and then started pointing at and naming things in books around 19 months. He would request things by asking (things like his bottle, dummy, biscuit). He always followed my point. Great eye contact most of the time. He would chose between items in my hands, get excited to see his cousin and family members.

I was getting concerned because even though he wasn’t calling me mama he could count 2-10 and recognise the numbers written down around this time of 18 months but not 1! Haha! Now he is up to 20 and recognises but isn’t obsessed with numbers and doesn’t seek them out, nor does he count much unless I encourage him. He started bringing me things for attention at around 19/20 months, showing me and bringing me things of interest, however he didn’t react to his name a lot and often ignored when I spoke to him. I felt he was vacant a lot of the time and especially in the car he would stare into space. I didn’t really feel he reacted to my expressions much, but was a happy and smiley child so it was hard to explain this to people as he was always and is still laughing and smiling. He wasn’t retrieving items when asked or following simple instructions.

A health visitor came and suggested she thought it was his hearing which subsequently turned out to be glue ear in one ear. A few months later it hadn’t cleared and had actually formed in his other ear too and he had mild hearing loss. He had grommets fit in January this year so we are now 3.5 months post op.

before his op he would start singing Hakuna Matatat from the Lion King or 1,2,3,4 from the jungle book, I thought it was cute because he loved them. Although it would be random, we did watch them a lot because he asked for them so just assumed he was saying what he could say.

Fast forward 3 months and his speech and pronunciation has definitely picked up a lot however he is now quoting A LOT of stuff from books. He still does pronounce words a bit differently but others in a normal tone. He’s saying 200+ words.. He can name most objects and is started to say things like

Where has gone (could be anything.. daddy, an aeroplane, someone we were with, an
animal, a toy he’s put down somewhere)

take it off (regarding his clothes)
Mummy’s turn, LG turn, himself turn (trying to practice turn taking and he says this often when he wants to do something)

has occasionally self referred such as “MINE” but tends to use his own name

mummy, open (door/packet/something) please
mummy fix it please

wanted me to get in bed with him and he said “mummy… bed. Here” and pointed next to him.

says yes and no appropriatly etc

it started with a paragraph from Elmer in around February but is now scripting small chunks of books several times a day. He begs to listen to the same books every day, I hide them he forgets about it and locks onto something else and starts quoting that. He’s currently taking the same chunk from around 3/4 books and will just randomly say lines from them not in context, however this is amongst his conversational language. He does answer appropriately and He doesn’t do this when we’re out in public or if we’re doing something stimulating. He just seems to do it when we’re at home together doing not much and they have noticed it at nursery.

he passed his 27 month check no problems, scoring slightly lower on the social side of it but not in any referral zone. he also passed his check up hearing test (as in the glue ear has gone) but also understand where they ask to complete an instruction every time a noise sounds with no problem. He understands most yes/no questions, can retrieve things for me, loves showing me things, points things out to me, asks me to help him do something

The HV knows I’m very worried so even though she didn’t hear any repetitive stuff she has agreed to come back.

I know he’s behind 100%. But until yesterday I was sort of thinking it was just echolalia (which he does have some of too) but now I’ve read up on scripting and I cannot find one forum where someone who’s child scripted was not ASD. He goes through stages of repeating
“hello mummy, what you doing”
and can say it a few times even if he asked me 5 mins ago. I would answering saying what I was doing and say what are you doing and he would answer appropriatly.

He also started to engage in play / role play at 23/24 months. He’s absolutely obsessed with dinosaurs and rawrs quite a lot a day as well as wanting to read books / watch programmes/ play with toy dinosaurs . I think he must say the word dinosaur 50 times a day!! He plays alongside/with other children. we had a baby at Christmas when he was 2 and 2 weeks before his op and he just cannot bond with her, he very occasionally makes reference to her “baby sister” “baby sister turn” but has hit her too. He doesn’t try to talk to her or would never hold / kiss her.

Now I’m wondering if all of his language is all echoed and he’s just learnt to use it appropriately. I know I’m being very stereotypical but he has never done the following as far as I’m concerned:

Lined things up
Head banged/tip toe walked/any physical stimming
had meltdowns (will tantrum to manipulate 100% though!)
slept or eaten poorly
had any sensory issues

however he has recently started doing things like :
has obsessions with books(that last days but still quotes them weeks later)/programmes or films (that last weeks)
bolt down our road but turning to laugh at us as he does it
licks things but looks at me and laughs as he does it
being overly friendly with strangers
eye contact not as great as it once was but still is there, mostly on his terms
not sure he recognises emotions… he says happy face and sad face when he sees a drawing, and can recognise the flash cards I’ve bought him but I’ve been so upset yesterday and today that yesterday when he cried he sort of pulled a false sad face and started pretending to cry but this morning just ignored the fact I was crying and rawhed at me! I feel he’s not empathetic but not sure when that’s supposed to start.

There’s just something odd about his behaviour / him which I’ve never been able to put my finger on.

i’m just so heartbroken. Until yesterday like I said I assumed it could just be late development due to hearing loss but now I’ve found out what he’s doing is called scripting I just can’t see any way other than that he is ASD? Obviously I absolutely adore him but it’s just a shock that suddenly people are started to recognise what I recognised long ago and I’m feeling overwhelmed again (nursery are picking up on some stuff). We have a check up in 2 months with HV to see how he’s doing if he needs to be referred (but if I didn’t have any Concerns she wouldn’t have seen us again because she wasn’t concerned) and private SALT assessment next week.

Does anyone have experience of ASD symptoms and glue ear, or scripting without ASD?

sorry for the long post it’s just taken me an hour to write and I know I’ve missed out loads of stuff he does that Is good and also bad but I don’t know. There was not major RED FLAGS , maybe just a bit emotionally immature and behind, but now I’ve convinced myself for sure.

[PritiPatelsMaker]

No experience of Echolalia or scripting or even glue ear for that matter so not sure I can be of much use.

The good things I can see from your post are that his speech and hearing both seem to have improved.

Has anyone done the MChat Test?

[Gowithme]

Glue ear is common with ASD, mine had it too. Mine wasn't diagnosed till 10 - didn't become really obvious until then, everything before that we just put down to him being young. Mine never lined things up or spun things, was always fine with loud noises, never tip toe walked, no stimming - everyone is different. You also may not be realising things are 'things', for example you say he licks things - I'd say that's almost certainly sensory. I trained as a teacher and worked with SEN kids and there were so many things that I didn't realise were 'things' at the time.
The echolalia and scripting to me suggest it's very likely he has ASD - even if they 'don't see it' and so won;t refer you at this point. You recognise there's something slightly unusual and I'd go with your gut. It might not be clear until he gets older - but just enjoy him and make the most of him ASD or not! Mine is a teenager now and hard work at time, has challenges, but wonderful.

[goldenK]

@Gowithme thanks for your reply!! I do agree it sounds sensory although he literally did it for 3/4 days and I went along with it first because it was me he licked so I licked him back! Then after a few times I shouted at him and then he started licking objects whilst looking at me and laughing as if it was a game. But noticed he stopped it about a week ago. He is also cheeky and knows what I’m on about a lot of the time he just zones out. Which is why i was sort of thinking possibly not ASD! He’s just never shown absolutely MASSIVE signs of anything until now. It’s all just been little things. What quirks did your child have if he didn’t have that of typical? 😊 I’ve calmed down a little bit now and feeling more positive about the whole thing. I can’t change him and wouldn’t want to just wish I knew what the future holds

[goldenK]

@PritiPatelsMaker yes I’ve done it and he got medium risk 4 (however one of the questions is do you suspect you’re child could be deaf and I put yes because he was lacking hearing but now he isn’t. I also find the bouncing question bizarre too because I thought all children liked to do things like that!

on Paper regarding The two year check and the 24 month check questionnaire he passed it all. He was really charming to the HV and seemed to be developing really well. She saw him last year and said he’s a different child. Which he is but the quirks have changed. He is still only young and he’s had a big impact with his ears but he shouldn’t be remembering all these paragraphs and be repeating them, I know ☹️

[goldenK]

Just wanted to update anyone who’s reading this in the future, I’ve taken again the stimulus of his favourite books and asked nursery to do the same. The scripting has stopped and has done since Thursday evening (it’s now Monday morning) .and I wrote this post Thursday afternoon. I collected him from nursery and NO MENTION of the books he’s usually obsessing over from there. May be a fluke but I will see. I’m now rotating his books so I read one a day and not getting any of the “trigger” books out. I don’t want to say it’s forever but he’s been a new child since Thursday 😬😬

[PritiPatelsMaker]

That's good news

[goldenK]

I just want to take the time to update this page incase anyone is seeking a similar question later. A month in, my little boy has stopped scripting AS much however is now doing it more with songs from
Encanto or other programmes he watches. He will randomly Just start singing/ speaking the lyrics but I suppose if you didn’t know that was that you might not recognise what he’s doing. His vocab and understanding has come on a lot in even the last 4 weeks however is still sometimes using regurgitated phrases which I know he’s picked up from me and other places. For example now when he says no he mainly says no thank you. He’s also been saying things like “oh god” and “oh great” but in context. I feel his eye contact is a lot better and he’s started telling me when things hurt. He had another ear infection last week and I only knew because he was saying ear hurt! Which he usually wouldn’t vocalise. I’ll update again in a month but his traits almost seem to be fading if that’s even possible. It’s been 5 months today since his op 😊

[SunflowerGardens]

He's very young OP, and he's catching up on his speech and language - this all sounds entirely normal to me (I have a child with hearing loss too)

My sons SLT talked a lot at that age about 'giving him the script' for real life situations through small world play. He would definitely have repeated words and phrases and still does at times now he's 5. NT and hearing 5 year olds do this too - don't you remember being little and watching the same film over and over again? It's normal for kids to watch say the secret life of pets or sonic daily or even more than once a day for a period of time. When that happens you know it's tapping into something in their brain and helping them to learn.

Stop worrying

[Worriedmum166]

Hi @goldenK I was reading your post and it was scarily like reading about my own son. He's 2 and a half this month.
I was just wondering how things have been for your son and you since? I literally have been losing sleep over worrying about him.

[PritiPatelsMaker]

So sorry that you are worried @Worriedmum166?

Has your LO has a hearing test and been referred to SLT?

Has your HV done an Ages & Stages assessment? if not, I would contact her today and ask her to do one.

How does he do on this SLT progress checker? There is a helpline of it shows up that he needs any support

[Worriedmum166]

@PritiPatelsMaker thank you so much for your reply. My HV was out to see him in November and because he was tired, didn't want to participate and wouldn't give her what she asked him for, would only comply for me she has referred him to be assessed for ASD. Hence me being in a panic. I've done the ASQ myself on him and he passes it. The speech there is a few grey areas for him depending on how honestly I answer the questions but as there is a helpline I think I'll get in touch with them. I need to be proactive instead of sitting worrying myself sick.
Again I appreciate the time to reply, thank you 💕

[PritiPatelsMaker]

Have you found the SEN section yet @Worriedmum166? They can talk you through what the assessment process is like and how to get the best from it

[goldenK]

Hey @Worriedmum166 !! So since this post my little boy has come on loads. He speaks in full sentences and can communicate his needs fully. He stopped scripting a month or two after this post and doesn’t do much repetitive speech anymore. We found out he needed glasses late last year and his prescription is +3 +4 unknowingly and needs glasses full time. I’ve definitely seen a change in his behaviour too. Although I do see elements of ASD I do wonder if they may be quirks as the person who originally agreed with me regarding my suspicions left the nursery weeks later (we got full apology from nursery) and if he is I feel it’s a situation where it would be picked up on school. Most of my worries have faded away as his traits have. I’ll write more later when I’ve time . Please don’t worry xxx

[Worriedmum166]

@PritiPatelsMaker thank you, yes I will go to that board as that would be most helpful too.

@goldenK thank you so also for your reply! Lovely to hear from you. That's great about your son, delighted hes doing so well.
My wee man has so many non red flags about him but he has a couple that do obviously worry me, either way whatever happens I'll just have to give it time. We have got the ball rolling in regards to being assessed anyway due to HV so it can only be a good thing I suppose, he will either be diagnosed or not, although with waiting lists like they are it's gonna be a long haul. I agree that my sons 'red flags' may also be quirks and just his little personality.
It's a shocking worry though, wish I could relax a little and stop watching everything he does.

[goldenK]

@Worriedmum166 what sort of quirks do you see? I see a lot of emotion when he has to do things he doesn’t want to do, namely when turning the tv off (😐) no melt downs but a lot of crying over insignificant things. Sometimes I feel he uses specific phrases and his tone of voice is still quite babyish, which in my head makes me wonder if it’s robotic/flat like some autists. My little girl has full range of expressions aged 1 where as I feel my son can have less expressive. He still can recognise numbers but has never progressed from last year so even tho he was recognising at 19/20 months 2-10, he can now recognise 1-sometimes 100 (he can def tell up to 30 but hit and miss over that) sometimes still gets mixed up between some numbers and has never been an obsession, has no idea on his alphabet at all which again is contradicting as if he was autistic and the number knowledge was an indicator I thought that may be his special interest or something but isn’t. His obsession with dinosaurs is still very real, I feel we speak or reference them every other conversation we had but some may say this was a normal 3 year old “obsessions.” These are some things that I personally see as little red flags now that could be ASD, but also may not. Just this morning I asked my 15 month old to get me a nappy and she did…. My son didn’t retrieve things on demand until he was 20 months.

[Worriedmum166]

Exactly like you mention about tone of voice @goldenK he has a tendency to use the same tone for the same phrase everytime. Like 'see you later' or 'come on mammy let's go down the stairs'. Said in the exact same way every time. He doesn't tend to script from TV or programmes but will learn theme tunes very quickly and sing those. He is however reciting books when we read them together however I do remember my daughter doing this also. Can use 3/4 words sentences to request things, like 'more juice mammy' 'want a rice cake' etc but no real back and forth conversation. Can answer very basic questions like 'what are you doing 'where is the .....?'which he will answer with words if he knows or a point in the direction of. He can't tell me about his day or anything like that yet.
He knows and recognises his numbers and can count forwards and back to 20. Knows and recognises his alphabet too. But not obsessed over numbers or letters. Loves to bring books to me and ask me to read, can sit and enjoy a story and answer basic questions as we read. He does have immediate echolalia as in will repeat the last few words of some sentences we say but uses his own speech too. He can imitates no problem, smiles when you smile at him, laughs at silly things, enjoys a carry on, has amazing eye contact, understands 2-3 step instructions. He has no major sensory issues, is definitely fussy with food but I consider it more picky that a real problem. Answers to his name, loves and adores his big sister, they play together all the time, he is learning to take turns with her and she is the main reason he is learning to use the potty, he goes when she uses the toilet lol so cute!
He has no obsessions I don't think, loves to play with cars but if he thinks something is more interesting he will drop them in a second. He does flap and jump when he's excited though or waiting for something in anticipation like a chocolate biscuit!
He had good play skills, and can do simple role play with his sister and is showing signs of imaginary play like using lego to make an ice lolly etc! I can absolutely relate to the no meltdowns but will cry over insignificant things. I'm genuinely so confused as to whether I need to be worried or not or if those wee things are just him.
I could write more no doubt but I better stop lol!
Does anyone else you know share your concerns about your little boy? I find my husband and family just tell me to stop fussing, he's 2 and he's just learning at his own speed. My daughter, now 4, was always ahead with her speech etc so I'm finding it hard not to compare the two even though I know I shouldn't.

[goldenK]

@Worriedmum166 sounds v similar to my son at 2.5 however over the last 6 months his speech and pretend play has propelled. Only difference I suppose is the lack of interest in the alphabet (he thinks everything is the 3 letters of his name) and also he’s never flapped. He plays with toys appropriately, never lined up toys etc, has friends and proper friendships. Yes my husband has seen my views as has my mum however they also think I over react. Nursery have him on a plan to understand his emotions more but most children are on some sort of plan at his nursery. I’ve brought up autism many times during his time there and apart from the one (22 year old) nursery nurse who subsequently left, they’ve all said they’re not worried. Now as nursery nurses they’re not actually allowed to tell you their views even when they refer, however this particular one did. However the others Eisner have said “I know blah blah told you she thought he’s autistic and I know I’m not allowed to say but I don’t seen autism in him at all” and that was his key worker who’s child is actually autistic? Really confusing! As he’s progressed so much in the last 6 months I’m really reluctant to pursue anything because I feel I’d be fighting a battle not worth fighting as he doesn’t cause me any problems to even refer… he speaks, he can communicate, he isn’t “behind” in any aspect of life so all I’d be able to bring up is the small quirks and what he did pre 2.5 which he seems to have grown out of. I do feel there is some ND there but I also see ND in myself (altho more ADHD not autism 😂). I feel it will be picked up when he’s at school but due to his birthday this isn’t for another 18 months (when he’s almost 5!). What have nursery actually said that is being looked into? Even if I pushed for it which I’ve tried to in the past the nursery SENCO just said the referral would be pushed back as he’s meeting all age appropriate requirements

[Worriedmum166]

That's how I feel, at the minute I can't see any areas where he needs huge help. My son doesn't go to nursery, I'm a SAHM so he won't be starting anything til September this year. We attend a playgroup once a week for an hour and a half, he enjoys it, asks to go all the time, will happily play alongside other children, has interacted a few times, built towers with another wee boy, shared toys in the home area with another wee girl. Will say hello, goodbye and interact with the other adults too, has tried to 'feed' a few mums with a toy spoon too lol! My HV wrote on his 2 year review 'likes to play on his own terms' that's why she was referring him. Has caused me no end of sleepless nights, worry and my husband wondering if I myself need to visit the doctor as Im driving myself mad. I've mentioned it to the workers at the playgroup we go too and they have said they see no red flags at the moment. He follows their instruction, has lovely manners, Interacts with them, joins in at song time etc. Time will tell I suppose as he gets older, kinda wish I had a crystal ball to give me a little clue though what's ahead in this case.

[goldenK]

@Worriedmum166 that’s how I used to feel. I just wish I could wake up in 6 months to see. I’m confused as to what your HV is seeing if I’m being honest. They see them for a 90 minute period (if that) and don’t know anything about them. Annoyingly if he’s not at nursery where he’s being monitored it’s hard to really trust anyone else’s judgement but your own as they see him so infrequently. As my child had significant hearing loss at some points before his 2nd birthday and eye sight before his third (and actually this has stemmed from me noticing one eye slightly turned outwards from being 6 months old so could have been since birth his slight loss of sight) I’ve researched into ADHD/autism symptoms when visually impaired and hearing impaired and the behaviours can actually mimic that of children with autism. That would ring true for my little boy, except the identification of numbers from a young age. But even the questionable eye contact where I’d think he wasn’t looking at me but then noticing that one eye actually was looking at me has relieved me in the fact he actually needed glasses and will need patch work on his turned eye. Also if there’s any positivity to look forward to as I know when I’ve reread everything I’ve written in my first comment (I would honestly say everything I’d written is indicative of autism) is that my little boy between 2.5-3 just caught up so quickly, he’s a totally different child to what he was 6 months ago. If you can try and push for a hearing and eye test as even if you don’t think it’s those, I didn’t either and turns out it was both.

[Worriedmum166]

I will do that @goldenK as you say you never know what it could show up.
The HV was late to our review that day so I ended up putting on the TV til she got there, then when she came in she literally said turn off the TV so I did, my son wasn't impressed, he cried and got up on my knee. She then straight away asked him for a screwdriver from his tool set, now at this point he didn't know what a screwdriver was, she asked about 4more times before I had to tell her he doesn't know that's called a screwdriver, he just knows it's for playing with. She then said you ask him for something so I asked him for his green tractor which he brought straight to me. Then got up behind me on the sofa and started singing the alphabet song. She said due to him not wanting to engage with her she wanted to put him forward for assessment. Now she came in, made me turn off his programme, and then started to demand things from him with not even a hello...etc so I don't blame him! That was literally all she done, didn't carry on with anything more. Left me in tears and said she would be back in 6months. Since then, like yourself watching your son I've seen big improvements in him and I look forward to seeing how he keeps developing over the next 6 months. I really appreciate you taking the time to always reply, thank you. It's great to be able to talk to someone that's been in a very similar position.

[MamaAl27]

@goldenK I literally felt I could have written this myself!
My son is 33 months and he recognised the alphabet and numbers 1-20 at around 20 months (not obsessive with it, just would point them out) with a few quirks like he would sometimes just not want to socialise, but was happy playing alongside. Was very fearful, didn’t say much, just lots of single words and could identify everything, would sometimes just be quite upset in some situations but other times very happy. I started to become concerned because everything indicated autism/Asperger’s.
I wasn’t worried about the autism/Asperger’s itself it was more along the fact that early intervention is key and I was worried I would miss it.
His speech took a massive leap around December which in turn is when the echoing and the scripting began and will
sometimes say me, but a lot of the time he will say his name like “John wants more banana” or “John is running very fast” and sometimes will say “mummy say sorry to John” or “John say hi”. He will also make a sort of ding ding noise when he is trying to convey something and say it really fast almost like he is trying to speak before he knows what he wants to say? 😂 but even since then his social skills have massively improved, he seems popular at nursery and has two very good friends that he adores. Loves going there. We also found out in February he has glue ear in both ears and was very good with the audiologist and consultant - listened to instructions etc. we have another appointment to see if he will need grommets but for us it made ALOT of sense with his behaviours why he would take himself off sometimes, because they told us he finds it hard to pinpoint the noise and where it’s coming from. He does get frustrated but we think it’s because of his speech delay which is delayed but not massively. We had a private speech therapist come out and she was happy with his progress and so are nursery but it’s just the speech we are working on him with and his emotions. He can get very upset if someone else is crying. I feel I have rambled and jumbled this, I do apologise! Your little one sounds like he is smashing it! X

[MamaAl27]

@goldenK and now also asking what’s that to everything 😂 but then also answering himself, so he will say “mummy what’s that? It’s a car!”

[goldenK]

@MamaAl27 hello 😊 has anyone has concerns or just you? I’m being honest my little boy stopped self referring just before he was 3 it just stopped one day and now he says “I” or “me.” With the odd name thrown in but only when I ask something like “who’s sat here” he might just say his name but 95% of the time it’s me and I. Tbh we have another baby so I am constantly self referring and calling myself mummy like “mummy do it” to both of them still so probs partly my fault. My little boy also refers to everyone as he and not she (although uses his and her correctly so it’s strange) but when I’ve tried to test him in the past by talking about him and saying “she” he usually corrects me and says I’m a he! But won’t use the correct pronouns for girls? Which I’ve read after 3 can be seen as autism however at nursery the other day they were all still mixing pronouns so worrying less! My son is now 6 months older than yours and honestly I cannot tell you how much his vocab has improved since then, I’m excited to see where another 6 months takes us. What sort of scripting does he do? Mine has totally grown out of that now. I don’t want to say I think he’s completely NT as I don’t but I will have to see as he goes on!! So worrying isn’t it 🤦🏼‍♀️

[goldenK]

@MamaAl27 the problems with my child didn’t resolve instantly after grommets it was more of a gradual thing. Something that may suggest that time would have helped anyway . Same with his glasses … he didn’t instantly put them on like those viral videos where the child suddenly sees and is amazed. But the fact he never took them off after the first time which is what I was worried for and even now says “I can see now” when he puts his glasses on 🥺🥺🥺🥺 their hearing and eyesight affects them so much!

[MamaAl27]

@goldenK it is just me who has concerns. HV was happy, nursery were concerned with his speech delay before we found out it was glue ear, but are happy now. Speech therapist was happy also. I think for me I hyperfocus and I think anything you read can be a behaviour at this age as he is still under 3. Honestly your boy really does sound like mine and I’ve seen a massive leap in his speech since 2.5 and since we talked on his level when finding the glue ear. It’s just the echoing a lot of what we say and he can recite certain books that he has read lots of and he sort of says the same thing on the way back from nursery “car is driving on the road and we are going home” but will also say something else like going to the shop or going to nanny and grandads. When we get to traffic lights he will say red is stop, and green is go go go. But I’ve noticed with this, he is now starting to put other words with those sentences rather than just what I’ve told him? Do you think your little boy was doing the scripting etc because of his speech delay? My speech therapist said it was common for them to do as they navigate their speech. I have also noticed he has started to become alot more sociable since his speech has come on and will hold hands with this little girl at nursery and stroke her hair 😂 Your little boy honestly sounds amazing and such a cutie!