2.5 year old copying "naughty" behaviour at nursery!!

[FlopsyMopsyCo]

Does anyone know anything about how to manage this? My son is nearly 2.5 and at nursery part-time. He's latched onto these two little boys and constantly says their names all the time! (Let's call them Freddy and Billy). If I say let's sing the bus song, he says "no bus song, Freddy song!". He does this with everything!!!!!

Out and about he will say his name is Freddy. Eg at his music class a new teacher asked his name. I said his name is [Flopsy's son] and he said "no, my name is Freddy"!

At nursery the carer spoke to me and said she was a bit concerned as my son is a lovely boy but has started getting rude and sidetracked by these two other boys. She said they are naughty (I don't think she was meant to tell me that) and that my son is perfectly behaved on the rare times they are absent , but when ever they are there he just copies them all the time. He didn't used to do this. They are all between 2-3 years old but I'm a secondary teacher and I feel like it's teenage behaviour!!

Example, the carers asked the children to sit down in a circle for a story. Freddy and Billy went running round the room shouting bum bum and my son immediately got up and started copying them. Then he wouldn't sit down. He's also started refusing to wash his hands and saying no because Freddy and Billy say no.

When I collected him yesterday the first thing he said to me was "big smelly bum" which is not something he's heard at home so I'm guessing it's another hilarious Freddy Billy thing. He's also started hitting out a bit.

I've seen Freddy and Billy and they are annoying to be honest! (Lighthearted ok!) I know they're only little but they've got a naughty vibe! Freddy always opens the door to mums with a helpful angelic look and then sniggers or blows a raspberry!

My son is really confident so it's not nice seeing him being a follower.

Okay so I know my precious little boy isn't going to be an angel all his life but is there anything I can do to manage this copycat behaviour?

The carer said his behaviour is going downhill and I'm worried the next step is detentions and an ASBO!

He's pushing boundaries.
What consequences are there at home and nursery for rude/bad behaviour?

The way you're talking about these kids is a pretty poor reflection on you tbh. You're aware these are babies, not teens, right?

Disagree entirely. 2.5 year olds with no boundaries at home are entirely capable of being 'naughty' and most toddlers that aren't yours are annoying.

Not much good advice for you OP except to keep up your own boundaries and tell him exactly why those behaviours aren't acceptable. I'd be telling the nursery to do the same.

We had this exact same scenario with a trio of our preschoolers last term. One was a fair bit younger as end of school year, the other two beginning of school year. The youngest was actually the best behaved alone and could be very sweet. One was a follower and one came across as far more grown up than their ages.
Together they would ignore the adults - staff and parents - completely fixated on one another and being silly. All were clever children, the one that came across as older was definitely the less innocent and more of an instigator.
We tried to make sure the children had time away from eachother by separating them into different groups for different activities, discussing things one to one and things like that but it was like they forgot everything when together.

We never did find a satisfactory solution but just keep communicating with the nursery. If there are days the other children aren't in and it's possible maybe swap your child's day so they can have a break from the intensity of the friendships.

No I don't agree with you at all. Toddlers and teenagers have a lot in common - brain development, inability to regulate emotions, seeking independence etc.

Thanks for the helpful comments.

I'm trying to make sure we keep our boundaries at home, but it's definitely causing his behaviour to need more boundary assertion than before. At nursery it seems bad as at home I can distract him away from thinking about these two boys eventually, but at nursery they are there the whole time.

Interestingly Freddy has gone on holiday today and the nursery staff did say they children were all better behaved in their absence!

Wait until they start school.....