Everything my godmother ever said to me, but especially, "I don't believe in treating children like children. I treat children like people."

She lived that, and somehow every child who got to know her puffed out his or her chest, took responsibility, and did more than you would expect them to be capable of at their age. She treated me like a person and, as a direct result, I ended up on the board of a nonprofit when I was 15, managing adult volunteers, making budget decisions, organizing fundraisers, and co-chairing multiple committees.

I treat my niece like a person, and at 12 she reads science news online, enters international science competitions, conducts behavioral trials with her pet fish using the scientific method, and also manages to be a huge help to my sister with my two-month-old baby nephew.

Childhood is a valuable thing and there's no reason to rush through it or make kids into miniature adults, but learning to actually listen to them as people instead of talking down or expecting less because of their age is a really enlightening skill. It's still hard for me and I have to do it consciously. But when I do get it right, the kids I'm around tend to be much more interesting and capable people in my care than when they're with people who treat them like their own image of "nine-year-old," rather than as people.