Toddler scared of one particular teacher

[GubsMum]

This is my first post, so apologies if I've posted in the wrong place – bear with me!

My little boy is 2 and has been at nursery part-time for 6 months. It took him a couple of weeks to settle him, but now he loves it and has come on loads. Up until now he seems to have got on well with all the other teachers and kids, but just recently he has started to get really upset when left with one particular teacher. He will be all happy as we come in, waving to people through the window, but then, if she is there, he will get really agitated and usually burst into tears and say 'scary! scary!' When another teacher picks him up and comforts him, he usually calms down. This has happened 4 times now.

It's unusual behaviour for him, as he's generally quite sociable (will toddle off and sit next to random strangers on the bus, for example!) and he also doesn't usually cry much.

My husband is worried and thinks we should talk to the nursery, but my feeling is that I don't really want to cause trouble when there's no evidence of any wrongdoing. I was wondering if this is actually quite a common thing that some kids go through?

Does anyone have any similar experiences?

[Tanith]

My DS absolutely freaked at same age when one of the teachers pretended to be a bear at songtime. It took him a while to get over his fear of her.
When he left the nursery school, she had become one of his favourite teachers.

You do need to talk to them about this so they can reassure him and manage any interaction between them at a pace he can deal with.

[jendot2]

I was also going to suggest that it may not be that she is scary but she has done something he is scared of... For example pretended to be a monster at story time.

Or of course she could also be shouty or unkind.

I would be chatting to the manager...not in an accusatory way, just in a casual chatty way. To make sure that the situation is monitored and your son is reassured.

If a child is frightened of something (for whatever reason) it is important to be on their side and fight their corner as they can't do it themselves. Any good nursery would be on side with this and be taking steps to help you out.