TOPEL is used to identify 3- to 5-year-old preschoolers who might have trouble learning to read and write. It assesses which areas?

• A. Letter knowledge and understanding of how written language works
• B. Understanding of single words and their meanings
• C. Phonemic awareness only
• D. Both A and B

Answer: (D)

TOPEL flags early reading difficulties by focusing on two foundational areas: print knowledge and definitional vocabulary. Print knowledge covers recognizing letters and understanding how written language works—concepts like print direction, the idea that letters combine to form words, and how text is read. Definitional vocabulary looks at understanding the meanings of words, which builds the word knowledge kids need to decode and comprehend texts later. While phonological/phonemic awareness is also part of TOPEL, the option that includes both print knowledge (A) and word meanings (B) best captures what the test assesses for identifying risk in preschoolers.