Trilingual Twins

[Beuska]

I have identical twins (they were 1 month premature with no complications) who are 3 years old now. They are exposed to 3 languages (Hungarian, Spanish and English) but they still don’t speak fluently. One of them speaks more than the other (basic words, adjectives, greetings, etc.). They both understand all languages but the speaking part doesn’t seem to be happening. The nursery is fully supportive with all sorts of help in place (E.g. Speech therapy) but it worries me when are they going to start talking. I believe in them and fully support them, I just feel that people in my environment quite frustrated about it. They can really stress me about this……..

From what I have read, multilingual children are a bit later to speak fluently: they have a lot to sort out. Since yours are only 3, they probably just need a little more time.

If you have learned another language, you may have found that your passive understanding (what is said, what you read) comes more easily than producing it yourself (speaking, writing) and I think this is a big part of it. Even monolingual children can be slow to speak despite understanding what is being said around them.

Which language(s) do they speak most often? Which language do you think they experience most?

Monolinguistic friends observed also that going out of their comfort zone (e.g. staying at grandparents') where they had to ask more for what they needed/wanted, brought on their language quickly.

A bilingual friend in London used to send her daughter to spend several weeks in France with her French grandparents to bolster that language.

Sometimes, it's the children's personalities. A different French friend told me that when she spoke French to her toddler son, he would always answer in English and would even shout at her, 'Speak properly, Mummy!' He now lives in France ...

Definitely this ^^

My friend's twins are bilingual and I remember she was very worried because they didn't really start speaking until they were about 4 and a half. They chattered to each other and appeared to understand each other but no one else could! By the time they were 8 they were well on their way to being fluent in both languages.
Another friend's son (trilingual) only spoke when he really had to, otherwise he would nod or shake his head. His parents, very high flyers, took him to all sorts of therapy but it was only when he started school he, suddenly became very chatty in English (neither parents language) but he understood them perfectly well. He refused to speak anything except English at home but they continued to speak to him in their respective languages (German and Czech) but when he spoke to his grandparents he would chat to them in their own language because they didn't understand English! He continued like this for years until he realised his friends were impressed with his language skills then he'd show off!

Don't worry, it will take time but it will happen.

Children reared with more than one language are slower to speak. But it's not abnormal and when they're well supported they come along in their own time.

My youngest had language delay on top of growing up bilingual, due to autism. But they've come along fine now.

The theory that bilingual children speak later has been debunked over recent decades.
At 3 they are still very young to be communicating fluently in any language. Do they go to nursery to be exposed to the community language?