Вам не нужны кавычки вокруг переменной, которая уже является строкой.
'I am a string, because I am surrounded by quotes';
$string = 'I am a string, because I am surrounded by quotes';
if (is_string($string)) {
echo 'Yes, the variable $string is a string, because it contains a string';
}
$anotherString = $string;
if (is_string($anotherString)) {
echo 'The variable $anotherString is a string as well, because it contains a string as well';
}
$notWhatYouExpect = '$string';
echo $notWhatYouExpect; // outputs the word '$string'