By children - what age are you talking about? That will really define how you deal with them. I find that working with people close to your own age (as a young SM), taking the approach of talking to them as equals ("Come on guys, co-operate with me") yet still keeping 'the line' in sight works. ('the line' is that small line between respect and 'come on mate, it was just a prank').
If they are (as I suspect) under 15's, things become a bit more difficult.
The main thing is to be firm.
A little more information on the power structure would help. Now, to be brutaly honest, I suggest that you put your foot down and refuse to take any flack from them. Insulting people is not to be tollerated. Neither is cursing. The actions you take depend on where you rank in the overall scheme of things.
The main thing though, is that you HAVE to get these 'chaperones'/'teachers'/'parents' to support you. I dont know how things are in the US, but over here in Australia, but the type of behaviour you are talking about is not to be tollerated. If you tell off a child, and an 'adult' does not support your decision, you need to pull them aside and be extreamly firm in telling them to NEVER undermine your authority again.
Remeber, you are responsible for the safety of everyone there, which means that if you say jump, they should jump right away and not answer back with a smart allec "how high?". Then there is also the fact that as SM, you are in the unique position that you can hi-jack a production meeting to deal with the issue, and you can bring up the fact that if these adults do not manage the children that you will be orchestrating a crew strike as you believe that the environment is unfit for the crew to work in. The abuse, coupled with the fact that orders which often relate to safety are constantly dissobeyed is a perfectly legitimate reason. Blackmail is not pretty, but it is quite effective.