Noah Pozner, 6, had a huge heart and he was so much fun, a little bit rambunctious, lots of spirit," Noah's aunt told CNN. "He was really the light of the room."

Six-year-old Olivia Engel's favorite stuffed animal was a lamb; pink and purple were her favorite colors.

Catherine Hubbard was 6 years old.

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Avielle Richman, 6, was happiest when she was on a horse. Her trainer told the Connecticut Post that Avielle would "giggle when she trotted."

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Authorities found 52-year-old Anne Marie Murphy's body in a classroom, covering young children killed in the shooting in an apparent attempt to shield them.

Jessica Rekos, 6, loved everything about horses -- horse movies, horse books, drawing horses and writing stories about them.

Victoria Soto wanted to be a teacher since she was 3 and talked about her students with "such fondness and caring," her mother said.

Lauren Rousseau, 30, was a permanent substitute teacher at Sandy Hook Elementary.

James Mattioli was 6 years old.

Josephine Gay was 7 years old.

29-year-old Rachel D'Avino likely didn't know it when she died, but her best friend was about to propose.

Caroline Previdi was 6 years old.

6-year-old Benjamin Wheeler's parents moved to Newtown from New York City in April 2011 so he could grow up in a quiet community.

At 6, Chase Kowalski completed his first triathlon, but that was just one of his pursuits. He loved baseball. He was in the Cub Scouts. 

"1, 2, 3, ready and go," Ana Marquez-Greene counts down in a homemade video provided to CNN affiliate WTIC. The girl in pigtails stands in front of a piano as her brother plays. Her voice is clear, bigger than her size. 

Mary Sherlach, 56, Sandy Hook Elementary's school psychologist, heard a "pop, pop, pop" sound around 9:30 a.m. She was shot to death after heading into the hall to find out what was happening.

Daniel Barden, 7, earned his missing two front teeth, his family used to say. His "fearless" pursuit of happiness and life also earned him ripped jeans.

Dawn Lafferty Hochsprung, 47, who became Sandy Hook Elementary School's principal two years ago, was "really nice and very fun," friend Tom Prunty said. And the students loved her.

Grace McDonnell, 7, was the ultimate "girly girl." Grace loved wearing pink and playing dress-up with jewelry, her grandmother told the Boston Herald.

Emilie Parker could "light up a room," Emilie's father said. He described her as "bright, creative and very loving." She was always willing to try new things, he said, except food. Her laugh was infectious.

Nancy Lanza moved to the Sandy Hook neighborhood of spacious houses on a crest overlooking gentle hills about 1998, raising two sons -- Ryan and Adam -- with husband, Peter, until the couple separated a few years ago.