A sixth-grader at West Kearns Elementary School near Salt Lake City, Utah, brought a gun to school on Monday, saying he wanted to protect himself and his friends after Friday's shooting in Newtown, Conn.

He "continues to assert that he brought the weapon to protect himself and his friends from a 'Connecticut-style [shooting],'" Granite School District spokesman Ben Horsley said.

Two of the 11-year-old's classmates told their teacher on Monday afternoon that the student had a gun. The teacher immediately "apprehended" the student and contacted the authorities, Horsley said. The boy is being charged with one count of possession of a firearm on school property and three counts of aggravated assault, for allegedly threatening some of his classmates.

He will be charged in the juvenile system and eventually will be transferred to another school.