If Your Toddler Seems Afraid of Other Children, They Might Be Highly Sensitive 50 Shares When I was staying at home with my toddler, I went to the playground and the library every day, where I developed a mom posse of sorts. We spent every day chatting about our lives, and of course, our toddlers. Since our kids had all been around their peers since they were babies, it seemed strange when one of the little girls suddenly seemed to be afraid of the other children. We noticed that when too many toddlers showed up at the playground, this little girl would stop freely exploring and take respite in her moms arms, sometimes even crying so much that they had to leave. In my own efforts to help, I tried to teach my daughter how to respect other people's boundaries or adjust her behavior to make her friends comfortable. These attempts did help our friend feel safer with my child, but she still appeared to be fearful of other toddlers, especially strangers. We never really got to the bottom of why this happened, so in my effort to learn more, I reached out to a pediatrician and a child psychologist.