Childhood Unplugged

Practical Advice to Get Kids Off Screens and Find Balance

Screens are everywhere. Kids spend an average of 7.5 hours on digital devices daily with profoundly negative consequences. Childhood Unplugged takes a bold approach to regulating children’s use of digital media, suggesting more time spent offline will benefit their resilience, independence, and family relationships.

By: Katherine Johnson Martinko

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Ditch the devices and bring back the magic of being a kid

Screens are everywhere. Children spend an average of 7.5 hours on digital devices every day with profoundly negative consequences. While some tech may “amplify” real-life experience, the vast majority undermines it by limiting physical activity, creating anxiety, or damaging self-esteem. Childhood Unplugged takes a bold approach to creating healthy boundaries around the use of digital media.

Drawing on her own family’s experience, plus interviews with digital minimalists, educators, and child development experts, Katherine Martinko presents:

Meticulously researched analysis of the impacts of excessive screen time on children’s physical, neurological, emotional, and social development
Specific pathways to reduced screen exposure, naturally leading to more time spent outdoors, increased confidence and empathy, and more creative and active play
Inspiration for caregivers overwhelmed by the thought of severing ties with the digital babysitter
Age-appropriate advice for parents of babies and toddlers, school-aged children, and adolescents.

Taking a calming, nonjudgmental approach, Childhood Unplugged is a lifeline for parents, caregivers, educators, and anyone who questions the role of digital media and yearns for the young people in their life to experience the profound beauty and magic of childhood.

AWARDS

FINALIST | 2023 Foreword INDIES Awards: Family & Relationships

Book Awards

FINALIST | 2023 Foreword INDIES Awards: Family & Relationships

About The Author(s)

Katherine Martinko is a columnist for The Globe and Mail and a leading voice in the movement to reclaim childhood from screens. A speaker for Jonathan Haidt’s Anxious Generation campaign, she shares her expertise internationally through talks, her popular newsletter The Analog Family, and appearances on national TV, radio, and podcasts.

Her writing has appeared in The Globe and Mail, Toronto Star, CBC, Global News, Motherly, and After Babel. A former senior editor at Dotdash Meredith, she has also worked with Martha Stewart, Allrecipes, and Treehugger.

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Additional Book Resources

Audiobook Supplement

Author Videos, Blogs & Upcoming Events

Young boy in yellow heart sunglasses reaches for leaves falling from overhead

How to Play More, Connect Deeper and Reclaim Family Fun

A woman and child working together with blocks

Interview with Katherine Johnson Martinko, author of Childhood Unplugged

Childhood Unplugged: YouTube Video Cover

“Childhood Unplugged” Book Introduction [2:47]

Four children throwing a volleyball in the air

This Tool Will Make Screen-Free Parenting Far Easier

Unplug written in wooden blocks next to a phone charger

How much screen time is too much for kids?

ISBN: 9780865719828

Page Count: 176

Dimensions: 7.5 × 9 × 0.8 in

Publication Date: July 11, 2023

Audiobook Narrator: Katherine Johnson Martinko

Audiobook Length: 5:41:12

This publication meets the EPUB Accessibility requirements, and it also meets the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG-2.0 AA). It is screen-reader-friendly and accessible to persons with disabilities. This book contains various accessibility features such as alternative text for images, table of contents, landmarks, reading order, page list, structural navigation, and semantic structure. Blank pages have been removed from this EPUB. For further information or questions contact [email protected].

Conformance: EPUB Accessibility Compliant | WCAG 2.0 AA Compliant

Screen Reader Compatibility: Designed for optimal screen reader experience. Accessible to persons with disabilities.

Content Enhancements:
Alternative Text for Images: Descriptive text provided for all images, ensuring visual content is accessible.
Table of Contents: Easy navigation through a structured table of contents.
Landmarks: Clearly defined landmarks for quick navigation to key sections.
Reading Order: Logical and consistent reading order for sequential content consumption.
Page List: Accurate page list for physical page referencing.
Structural Navigation: Clear hierarchical structure for easy content traversal.
Semantic Structure: Use of appropriate semantic markup for content clarity and meaning.

Optimization:
Blank Page Removal: Unnecessary blank pages have been eliminated for a streamlined experience.

This publication offers text that is readable by screen readers and provides partial accessibility for persons with disabilities. It contains limited accessibility features. For further information or questions contact [email protected].

Key Accessibility Features (Partial):

Screen Reader Compatibility: Text is readable by screen readers. | Partial accessibility for persons with disabilities.

Content Enhancements (Limited):
Table of Contents: Easy navigation through a structured table of contents.
Structural Navigation: Clear hierarchical structure for easy content traversal.

Limitations and Rationale:
Partial Accessibility: The publication includes some basic accessibility features, but is not fully accessible.
Disproportionate Burden: Full remediation to meet all accessibility requirements is not provided due to the disproportionate burden.
Financial Constraints: The estimated cost of full accessibility updates (including semantic tagging, image descriptions, and enhanced navigation) significantly exceeds projected sales revenue.
Non-Viable Remediation: The publisher has determined that a complete remediation effort is not financially viable.

This digital package provides a complete audio version of the main text alongside a supplementary PDF containing all visual and non-verbal content from the print edition.

Audiobook Features:

Complete Main Text: A full spoken-word recording of the book’s primary content.
Easy Navigation: Includes convenient chapter-level navigation to easily find your place.
Accessibility Ready: The audio format is fully suitable for print-disabled users.

Accompanying PDF Supplement:

All Non-Verbal Content: Includes all front matter, back matter, images, graphs, charts, and tables from the original book.
Screen-Reader Friendly: The PDF is formatted for use with screen readers.

Please Note: While the PDF is designed for accessibility, any images it contains do not currently have alternative text descriptions.