Students said they took the lessons of the week to heart. Jenna Jelich, a sixth-grader, said students should accept and embrace each other’s differences. One way to do that, she explained, would be to take an interest in something that a classmate likes.

Sixth-grader Brennan Foskolos said if everybody was made fun of for their differences, school would be a place where children are sad, making it difficult for them to learn and be successful.

Brennan admits he likes the color purple, which isn’t always popular among boys, but said that is he is comfortable sharing that fact with others. Everyone, he said, should be confident in who they are. “They’ll say it’s not cool,” he said. “I say, ‘I don’t care what you think.’”

Gruen said it is tough for an 11-year-old to admit they like something that isn’t considered “cool.”

Dever isn’t the only elementary school Brennan has attended in his young life, but it’s certainly his favorite, and that is because of the culture of tolerance that exists there. “I’m glad to be a part of this school,” he said, “because it is so big on stopping bullying.”