Letter to the preschool teachers

This was the letter I wrote to Buddy's preschool teachers.

Dear Teachers,

We’re looking forward to having Buddy in your preschool class this year!

We wanted to let you know a few things about Buddy that make him unique. He was diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder called Williams syndrome, which can lead to learning and physical disabilities. If you’d like to learn more about this disorder, you can visit www.williams-syndrome.org or UnderstandingWilliamsSyndrome.blogspot.com.

As part of that disorder, Buddy faces some special challenges.

1.     His hearing tends to be more sensitive (called “hyperacusis”). This doesn’t mean he’s deaf or has hearing loss—instead, it means that sounds that might not bother normal people can bother him. You may see him put his hands over his ears frequently to block out noise he has difficulty tolerating. In some cases he may say no to let you know he doesn’t like a noise; other times he may cry. A few examples of noise that have bothered him in the past include small wind-up toys (that make a buzzing sound) and loud yelling by other children. We try not to make a big deal out of it or baby him too much and just tell him he’s ok.

2.     Many people with Williams syndrome have difficulty eating regular food. We’ve worked with Kieran quite a bit so that he eats a variety of textures; however, for some reason, he has difficulty eating in some public places. He may refuse to eat any snacks you offer him (although please do expect him to sit at the table while the others eat)—this doesn’t mean he isn’t feeling well. And I’m not concerned if he doesn’t eat at preschool—he’ll eat at home (he won’t starve J). He likes some crunchy foods (goldfish crackers, pretzels, etc.) but tends to avoid foods with a gummy texture. His low muscle tone also prevents him from being able to chew harder foods such as raw carrots.

3.     One interesting trait of those with Williams syndrome is that they tend to be overly friendly with everyone—even those they don’t know. They don’t have an innate fear of strangers that most people have. For example, Buddy will say hi to anyone he sees in the store. Obviously, though, this trait can also be a drawback and even a danger to him. While we want to allow him to be friendly with others, we’re still trying to figure out how to best teach him how to interact with others properly.  We want to encourage him to greet people with high-fives instead of hugs and to distinguish family/friends from strangers.

4.      Those with WS can also have low muscle tone, which makes motor skills more difficult. We want to encourage him to keep working on fine and gross motor skills, as well as oral-motor movements.

5.      And finally, visual-spatial areas can be challenging for those with WS. For example, drawing, handwriting, and puzzles may be difficult for him, so we want him to work hard on these areas.

Having said all of that, we want you to expect from Buddy what you expect from the other children in the class. He can learn and we expect him to do his best. We’re excited to see him grow and develop this year as you work with him in the classroom, and as we continue working with him at home. Please feel free to contact us with any questions or concerns. Thanks for serving the Lord in this way!