Well done Joe. Like you said, if he continued to shy away, they would pick on him more and more. Let's hope that has done the trick and they leave him alone from now on. Little so and so's, they need to find something else to do with their time.
Half the trouble is lack of discipline in the home and the school teachers have their hands tied, they are frightened to say boo to some of them and if they do, they get irate parents having a go at them. Very difficult these days. I wouldn't like to be a teacher with all they have to put up with.
We had a lady teacher on my other group whose life was made hell by one particular girl and she had lots of time off sick over it and has eventually taken early retirement. Makes my blood boil I can tell you.