My toddler has a lot of fears and she doesn't take it well (read: the type who clings and shivers and cries when facing something that scares her). We're taking things one step at a time though and here are a few things we've done that have helped alleviate her fears:
(1) Fear of fish [in an aquarium] - we bought her a lone female fighting fish in a small bowl and set in the middle of our living room. She started by peeking at the fish from the doorway. She eventually got closer and closer until she finally walked up to the bowl and said "Hi!". Now she's able to tap at the bowl to greet the fish.
(2) Fear of thunder - we told her the clouds were clapping their hands because they were happy. She seems to have accepted this explanation and screams "the clouds are just happy!" whenever there's thunder.
(3) Fear of other kids - we enrolled her in toddler classes (Gymboree helped a lot). She's still quite shy and easily intimidated, but there's been a lot of improvement since her first class.
(4) Fear of motorcycles - we told her it's just "Edgar" from her favorite cartoon, The Aristocats.
(5) Night terrors - we've lessened her food intake at night - light supper or cereal instead of a full meal with rice. It seems to help her sleep better with lesser occurrences of nightmares.
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