One of the symptoms of my son's autism is delayed echolalia - the repetition of words and
phrases he heard hours, days or even weeks
before. For a long time he has used these
echoes in place of real language (though now he's starting to show some improvement).
He seems to know the meaning of these phrases and uses them at appropriate times -
it just sounds odd:
He says - it means
Ahoy there! - Hello
Hooray! - Yes
Ouch! - No
Are you ok? -
I'm hurt
interesting
- interesting
He likes to jump on his bed and can jump for 45 minutes
straight. while he jumps he always has something interesting to repeat over and
over:
You've got to sing!
If you dream
Mail!
I know it!
G - giraffe!
T - tiger
N-Y-C (as in New York City)
If you go right now and jump on your bed repeating one these phrases, I
think you'll find he's on to something.