1KHO 549: The Hidden Skills Behind School Readiness | Allison Mell, Tots on Target

The 1000 Hours Outside Podcast

Ginny Yurich

Kids & Family, Parenting

4.8 • 2.3K Ratings

🗓️ 14 August 2025

⏱️ 64 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Most people think school readiness means knowing letters, numbers, and how to sit still—but what if those are the outcomes, not the foundations? In this powerful episode, pediatric physical therapist and founder of Tots on Target, Dr. Allison Mell, reveals the “hidden” developmental milestones that set kids up for academic and social success—things like crawling, balance, crossing the midline, and even clapping games. These early motor and sensory experiences—often displaced by screens—are how the body feeds the brain. When kids skip them, it shows up in surprising ways: struggling with handwriting, falling out of chairs, or bouncing off friends in circle time. Allison and Ginny explore why these physical milestones matter so deeply and what parents can do—at any age—to help kids thrive. You'll leave this episode with practical strategies, renewed confidence, and a deeper understanding of how movement builds strong, capable learners. Whether your child is just learning to crawl or heading into middle school, this conversation is your blueprint for supporting natural development in a world that’s rushing childhood. 🔗 TotSpot Membership 🔗 Tots on Target Blog 🔗 Follow Allison on Instagram A huge thank you to our sponsors! Check them ALL out below: Select Quote: Head to www.selectquote.com/1000hours to learn more. BetterHelp: Visit www.BetterHelp.com/1000HOURS today to get 10% off your first month. Quince - Visit www.quince.com/outside and get free shipping and 365 day returns NIV Application Bible - visit www.NIVapplicationbible.com if you’re looking to grow in your understanding of Scripture and make it real in your daily life. Cozy Earth - Upgrade your summer sleep at www.cozyearth.com and use code OUTSIDE for 40% off their best-selling sheets, loungewear, and more. Lagoon - Go to LagoonSleep.com/OUTSIDE and take their awesome 2 minute sleep quiz to find your match.Use the code OUTSIDE for 15% off your first purchase Brave Books - Right now, you can get 20% off your first purchase at www.BRAVEBooks.com/1000hours with the code 1000HOURS. COSMO - Right now, COSMO is running an amazing back-to-school deal, plus free shipping and a risk-free 30-day guarantee. Head to www.cosmotogether.com/1KHO to grab one today. NurtureLife - Head to NurtureLife.com/1000HOURS55 and use code 1000HOURS55 for 55% off your first order PLUS free shipping. Earthley - Use the code 1000hours to get 10% off your next purchase at www.earthley.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to the 1000 Hours Outside podcast. My name is Ginny Urge. I'm the founder of 1,000
0:04.2	hours outside. And I'm so excited about today's guests. We are going to be talking about kids of all
0:09.2	ages, but talking a lot about toddlers in the early stages. Dr. Allison Mel from Tots on Target is here.
0:15.8	Welcome, Allison. Well, thank you so much for having me. This is such an honor to be talking with you, and I am so excited for this.
0:23.5	Okay, you are perfectly primed to be helping out parents because you are a pediatric physical therapist and a mom of four, including a set of twins.
0:33.2	Talk to us about your path toward tots on target. Sure. So, yes, I am a mom. I have four kids, two boys, two girls, my first two are twins.
0:42.5	And, you know, I love the mom experience. And then also I love working with kids.
0:48.7	I always knew I wanted to work with kids. I mean, even as a child myself, as a teenager, I was a lifeguard, a counselor, a babysitter,
0:55.4	all that kind of stuff. So when I was drawn towards physical therapy right from the get-go,
1:00.3	I knew that I was going to be in the child space, and that's where I went right away. I've worked
1:06.2	in all different types of environments. I've worked in a sensory gym, in a school. I've worked
1:13.1	privately. Everything from birth newborns through big kids, like 10-11, I would say is like my
1:19.1	top end of what I worked with. And I spent a while in the preschool kindergarten area.
1:25.0	I love working with kids. I love working with families. I'm all about motor
1:29.4	development, motor experiences. I also feel like it's so important to look at holistically how a child
1:35.4	is functioning overall. When the idea of Tots on Target came, it was really in an effort to educate
1:40.7	parents on child development. What do they need to know? What's good to know? How can they
1:46.7	foster development in their home environment because their kids spend a lot of time at home too?
1:52.2	And I wanted parents to really feel empowered enough to be able to advocate for their kids and help
1:57.9	their kids along. Talk to us about where we're at with developmental milestones. It is something that I think there's some fear around. You know, you get those sheets at the doctor. It's like these are all the things they should be doing. And then there's a lot of worry around if my kid is doing it. If they're not doing it, are they at the right stage? Can you talk to us about the focus there and what's happening overall?
2:18.6	Does it feel like there are a lot of people that are falling behind these milestones?
2:22.6	Does it matter?
	...

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