Williams Syndrome, also referred to as Williams-Beuren syndrome, is a rare genetic disorder that is not widely known or understood. Around 1 in 18,000 boys and girls are affected by it in the UK; as a comparison, around 1 in 1,000 babies in the UK are born with Down Syndrome. The cause of Williams Syndrome is a genetic abnormality within chromosome 7, where some of the genetic material from adjacent genes is deleted.[1] The condition is usually random, but can be familial, with a 50% chance of a mother or father who carries the gene passing it on to their child.
As a developmental disorder, children born with the condition have both physical and mental delays. Consequently, they face a number of challenges in their home and school environment. In the context of physical symptoms, children will have delayed growth before and after birth and are often small in height and stature. They are likely to have heart defects, musculoskeletal defects and during infancy, high calcium levels in their blood (the latter can be treated through a diet excluding vitamin D), along with varying degrees of dyspraxia (developmental co-ordination disorder), affecting their movement and coordination.
Key facial features tend to include full cheeks, a rounded nose, short eyelid folds, a wide mouth and smaller teeth.[2] However, these physical signs manifest in each child in varying degrees and are matched by various distinctive strengths in mental attributes, as well as some weaknesses in mental attributes.
One Special Educational Needs teacher I spoke to said that a little girl with Williams Syndrome she had taught at primary level ‘was socially very different to her peers, in that she was very outgoing and socially ‘cued-in’ but like an older person. For example, when I got engaged, she offered me heartfelt congratulations and wanted to be amongst the first to congratulate me; those were her words exactly.”
It is encouraging to note that children with Williams Syndrome can do well at school. They benefit from additional learning support (in mainstream schools). Within a supportive, inclusive education environment, they can reach their potential. My intent is to increase awareness of Williams Syndrome by providing an overview of its signs or indicators for teachers and other school staff, as this is a largely unknown disorder which still impacts the lives of 1 in 18,000 children. The primary focus of this overview is cognitive and social development and how these might be addressed in the classroom and school environment. This overview can be followed up by exploring some useful relevant websites.[3]