At the store the other day, a toddler walked by and called me おじさん. I know this is a generic "mister" for children toward middle-aged adults. I'm wondering if there's an equivalent generic word for adults toward children?
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There are several generic word for children, and we can call toddlers like:
ぼく (Only for boys, popular)
わたし (Not only but especially for girls)
Example:
ぼくはどこからきたの? (Where did you come from?)
ぼく/わたしのおなまえは? (What's your name?)
Additionally, for schoolchildren (older than toddlers), we can call them [君]{きみ}. Usage of 君 is really wide. With 君, you can call persons younger than you.
Example:
[君]{きみ}はどこから[来]{き}たの? (Where did you come from?)
EDIT
Robert's question
Q. ぼく would sound as if I was referring to myself.
Why Japanese people call toddler boy ぼく is that, the usage of original 僕, a FIRST person pronoun, had been varied in long Japanese history.
Some SECOND person pronouns are imported from first person pronouns. Examples are: お[前]{まえ}, [手前]{てまえ} (てめえ). Case of ぼく can also be applied to this, but this is a special case anyway. You can say ぼく only for toddler boys.
Some additional suggestion
As you can read in comments, お[兄]{にい}ちゃん and お[姉]{ねえ}ちゃん can be used in some case but it can't be used for toddlers. [坊]{ぼう}や is more suitable for this toddler case. [坊主]{ぼうず} sounds funny and can also be used but it sounds rough.
See also
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If I wanted to reply to the girl who called me おじさん, I wouldn't call her わたし though. That would sound as if I was referring to myself. Correct? With 君, is it used by itself or with さん as in 君さん? – Robert Jun 08 '15 at 05:28
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You wouldn't say 君さん. And on more than one occasion I have seen younger kids being referred to as 僕 or 私 purely because (I assume) that at that age they have learnt the words for "I"/"Me" and assume that said "I" / "Me" referrers to them. It isn't always that 私 or 僕 refer to oneself. In personal experience when I have said a statement with 僕, I have been queried with the same 僕. ‘A:僕は日本で仕事しています。 `僕の職業は？ Albeit I am at a stretch to ever use it myself, it doesn't seems like it can be used the way @Takumi describes. – The Wandering Coder Jun 08 '15 at 06:36
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3What about お姉ちゃん and お兄ちゃん? – ssb Jun 08 '15 at 07:10
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@Robert Good question. This is a strange point of Japanese. I'll edit my answer later. – puhitaku Jun 08 '15 at 08:19
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@ssb Oh thanks. I forgot that at this point. I also include about that later. – puhitaku Jun 08 '15 at 08:19
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2What about 坊主 (ぼうず) I heard plenty in animes, can't be bad (笑) – Urukann Jun 08 '15 at 09:13
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Wouldn't it be 坊や instead of 坊主? – dinogeist Jun 08 '15 at 12:52
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@TakumiSueda You say お姉ちゃん and お兄ちゃん wouldn't be used for toddlers. For which ages would these be appropriate? Also, is 坊や only for boys or is it OK for girls too? – Robert Jun 08 '15 at 23:35
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坊や is fine for very young boys. You can also call little boys 少年. – Avery Jun 08 '15 at 23:53
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@Robert お姉ちゃん、お兄ちゃん are usually used starting from around High School age. Note that this isn't exclusive use and there are quite a few use points (especially with お姉ちゃん). – The Wandering Coder Jun 09 '15 at 00:12
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3@ Urakann 坊主 is usually a derogative term. @ dinogeist 坊や seems to literally translate to boy, which may not be the most polite way to address someone, even if they are a child. However as this was the one I found had the most use patterns I would go with this one (for toddlers). @ Avery Morrow You would never address a small boy as 少年. That would be a collective term for small boys (as with small girls, you would not address as 少女) . – The Wandering Coder Jun 09 '15 at 00:19
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I noticed that お嬢ちゃん is left unsaid while 坊や is mentioned. – user4092 Jun 11 '15 at 09:03