When you are a role model for children

Question

What does a child do (the verb / idiom / expression) when they look at their elderly and try to do what they are doing? E.g. it is said that you'd better be careful when you're smoking etc. so that children are not in the surrounding are (you'd better do that in your own privacy,) so that children (that are so sensitive), do not tend to emulate your actions and they don't find any interest towards such stuff?

You, as an adult person, doubtlessly are acting as a role model for them, so what they do in return?

Can we say that they are taking a role model from their adults?

The only idiom I found is:

To take a leaf from someone's book.

But I'm not sure if it works in this sense.

I wonder if you could let me know about it.

Answer 1

The idiom I immediately thought of is look up to.

From macmillandictionary.com:

look up to someone
to admire and respect someone

He’s a role model for other players to look up to.

• You can also consider, view, see, have someone as a role model, or be a role model for/to someone.
• You're a role model someone follows, or copies, or imitates.