Monday February 26, 2007
I have used the term ’scripting’ to describe how Zane is talking. I found a really good essay written by somebody further down the road than we are and I can see Zane following along the path. Zane is at the point now where he is just starting to modify scripts, and we are seeing it more and more as he gains more insight into how language is used.
Dr. Strangetalk or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Echolalia
On a related note, I realized about an hour ago that this is the first time he has gotten sick and not regressed to being nonverbal. Every time before this, which, granted, isn’t really a lot in the scheme of things, one of the things that tells us he is sick is that he stops using language at all, even basic language.
This time he is not only using language, but an hour ago (when I had the realization) he sat on my lap telling me the story of the three little pigs using a sequence of pictures he constructed at preschool. It was very sweet. I heard some “..Huff, Puff, blow your house down” (and the action of blowing) and the 1st house (hay) and 2nd house (sticks) both elicited a ‘no’ after the huffing and puffing and the brick house elicited a resounding “YES!”, followed by something with the words “pan” and “fire” mixed in, then an “ouchie” while pointing at the wolf leaving with his tail smoking. It is the first time he has even attempted to tell me a story. I will treasure it as long as I live. I am so amazed and proud of him, especially since the story was accompanied by the coughs and sniffles that usually signal a regression.
I love me some MOM-NOS.
Yay Zane!
Hey! Those pictures are so adorable. Matt and I are planning on getting Sophia some of those letters. (Sophia really likes Zora. When I came to your site and Sophia saw the pictures, she pointed at Zora and said “Bah-by!” I haven’t heard her say anything relatively new to her so clearly before.) I bet they would be the best of friends. They would plot against us and get into stuff together
Hope Zane gets to feeling better.
Zane is really making strides in the language department. You and Zach are such terrific advocates for him, and I can see that you appreciate both his progress and the journey that he’s taken. Keep up the good work :).