[originaltext] In some ways, children should be treated as mature people. Fo

In some ways, children should be treated as mature people. For one thing, adults should not use baby talk with children, using real words with children helps them develop their language skills more quickly. In most cases, children admire their parents or their elders, and they want to understand and communicate with adults in the way adults do among themselves. Baby talk with children often makes them feel patronized, frustrated, and confused. So, animals should be called "cows" or "dogs", not "mu-mews" and "bow-ows". Second, parents should be consistent when disciplining their children. For example, If a parent tells a child "You cannot have desert unless you put away your toys", it is important that the parent follow through on the warning. By being consistent, parents will teach children responsibility and give them a stable center around which to grow. Finally and most important, children should be encouraged to join in such off-class activities as the boy scouts, the children’s band and the teen-court. In doing so, parents will thus be helping their children prepare for the complex decisions that they will have to deal with in later life.