Toddler Won't Socialize

Sounds like she's more of an observer. She probably is sensitive and would be more comfortable playing with someone in her own home setting. I would also wonder if she prefers older kids such as her cousins. My daughter was the same way. She liked it better with one playmate at a time. Try inviting a child from daycare over sometime. Maybe it will help her feel a bit more social at daycare. Hope it helps!

Toddlers don't play with others of any age.
(Most likely the cousins are entertaining her - and that's different.)
They do something called parallel play - play next to each other rather than playing cooperatively with each other.
It's a perfectly normal development stage.
Kids learn to play cooperatively by 4 (or 5 or even 6).
Right now she's learning about ownership (and it takes them awhile to work it out).
Unless you have/have had a toddler, you wouldn't understand this, but it's SO TRUE it's kind of funny when you see it in action:
Toddler Rules of Ownership:
1. If I like it, it's mine.
2. If it's in my hand, it's mine.
3. If I can take it from you, it's mine.
4. If I had it a little while ago, it's mine.
5. If it's mine, it must never appear to be yours in any way.
6. If I'm doing or building something, all the pieces are mine.
7. If it looks just like mine, it is mine.
8. If I saw it first, it's mine.
9. If you are playing with something and you put it down, it automatically becomes mine.
10. If it's broken, it's yours.
11. If it's broken, but you are having fun playing with the pieces, it's mine again.
12. If there is ANY doubt, it's mine.

This is the primary age for parallel play, so it might be that she's happy just doing her own thing and sometimes wants to watch and see what the group is doing.

Does the teacher have a couple group gathering/circle times each day? That can help.

For what it's worth, my son wasn't really interested in playing with other children until a few months ago. So it was on the verge of four years old when his preschool teachers started to intervene and had him "shadow" other children during the day. This looked something like "Okay, Kiddo, today you are going to do everything Sam does. When he puts on a cape, you put one on. If he goes over to the blocks, you are going to go with him." and then they kept him "in the game" for about 40 minutes each morning to start. My son's tendency is to gravitate toward more single-player sensory activities which might include parallel play, but not much interactive play. (Think sand table, play dough, water table.) After a few months of their guidance, he was able to play with the children all morning before the school year was over.

I'd say let her do this single-person play for a little longer and then talk with her teachers on helping her move into more group play when she's turned three or so. Is her daycare divided into age clusters? That will help, esp. when/if she moves into a room with more socially sophisticated peers.

PM me if you have more specific questions. It's kind of a weird experience, being a preschool teacher myself and having the kid who was more socially disinterested (and a big goofball). I give great credit to his teachers!

I wouldn't worry too much about it. My daughter started daycare when she was 18 months and was the exact same way for months. She is now almost 27 months and is finally starting to socialize with the other kids. She is still very independent though and still likes to do her own thing at times but I am happy that she is finally mingling with the other kids. Give her time, when she is comfortable and ready she will probably surprise you :)

Good Luck!

Maybe she really likes the toys there. If she knows how to play (she does in other situations) and is choosing not to then I wouldn't worry about social issues. She may just really love to be alone sometimes. They only play for short periods of time in child care. Most of their time is structured.

Ask her teachers if they are concerned. Tell them what you are seeing and their opinions of it. They may be able to get her interested in having a closer friend that she'll enjoy playing with.

Totally normal. My boys love playing with their older cousins, too, because their cousins do things like push them in the swing or pull them in the wagon or show them attention in ways Mommy doesn't always have time to do.

I started a playgroup with my older son (now almost 5) when he was 18 months. There were two other kids in our group. They did mostly parallel play until they were 3 or 3 1/2. The started preschool together at 3, and that's when I really started seeing them play together. They're doing great now, most of the time.

Sounds totally normal to me.

it's up to the staff to encourage her into breaking out of her comfort zone. This should be drawn to their attention, a game plan devised, & feedback provided to you in a timely manner. Hope this helps....

Nothing wrong with it.

When my daughter turned 3 she started to socialize a lot more. I've always done activities with her, museums, storytimes, mommy & me gymnastics, and she would always hang back and just watch. In fact, it took us a whole year at gymnastics before she would even do the warm-ups. Now, she runs back into the gym and does the class by herself and talks all the time about all her friends. Don't worry about it, especially if she plays and interacts with her cousins. It will pass and she get more sociable, but she may be someone that ends up being a L. bit of a loner anyway...I'm that way. I would encourage her to participate/socialize more but not push it, let her make the first move. Don't stress!

Normal. Don't worry about it.