Echolalia - will additional ST help?

malcivar

When Chris was in EI he got ST 5x a week but now that he's in pre-school he gets it only 2x and DH and I just don't see much improvement in his speech at all. When we got his latest progress notes, there is a note from the therapist that he has problems transitioning when they pull him out for his speech sessions and tantrums.  Now I know these tantrums and I know how long they last and with his sessions being for 30 mins, I think he's MAYBE getting 15 minutes at most.  Once he gets going with a tantrum, it takes a while for him to calm back down.  

So lately I've been thinking about getting him additional ST sessions at home, maybe a couple of times a week after school, but I don't know if it will help.

His speech I would say is 80% echolalia.  Yes he can make requests but if he's hungry, he won't say "I'm hungry".  He'll say "I want (snack, sandwich, chips, fry, goldfish)" and if he's thirsty it's "I want (water, juice)".  He doesn't call people by their names.  He just kind of stands in front of you or gets your attention some other way.  He only says hi if we prod him.  Most of what you hear him say are snippets from games he plays or tv shows he watches.  Sometimes when he can't sleep, he'll just go on and on with clips from different things.  

I know echolalia is a normal part of speech development and more pronounced in kids on the spectrum but I don't know if additional ST will help.  

 Thoughts?