One of the more perverse things I learned back in the day was exactly this. I even saw the school counselor and we worked on actively ignoring taunts. It didn't

One of the more perverse things I learned back in the day was exactly this. I even saw the school counselor and we worked on actively ignoring taunts. It didn't work. Later I realized it wasn't about a reaction, it was tribal posturing to others. It was about showing they were "in" and I was "out."