Hello. I’m Katherine,
an author & speaker.
My goal is to reclaim childhood from screens.

Are you worried about how much time your kid spends on their phone? Has family life deteriorated into a constant battle over screen time? You’re not alone. Navigating device use has become one of parenting’s biggest challenges. Many households feel overwhelmed by the proliferation of digital devices, their addictive designs, and social pressure to use popular apps. But it’s never too late to make a change! I can guide you to build the family life you want, where technology is a tool, not a toy.

Need a Speaker?

Let’s Work Together!

Katherine gives in-person and virtual talks. She presents to a wide range of audiences, including parents, educators and administrators, health care providers, church groups, service groups, and more. She speaks at universities, public and private schools, corporate events and conventions, and professional development days. Talks and workshops can be tailored to the audience’s needs and interests.

Past speaking engagements and clients include the McLellan Foundation, Corewell Health, McMaster University, Rockford University, Waldorf schools, Family Services, Canopy Children’s Solutions, CHI St Joseph’s Health, Toronto Catholic District School Board, Oak Harbor District Schools, Grand Rapids Christian Schools, Stanwood-Camano School District, Iowa Great Lakes Rotary Club, and many others.

Please reach out to learn more about rates and availability. All inquiries welcome.

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READ THE BOOK

Childhood Unplugged: Practical Advice to Get Kids Off Screens and Find Balance

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 experiences, 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.

Testimonials

Katherine is an exceptional speaker whose visit to our school left a meaningful and lasting impact on students, staff, and families. Her insights from Childhood Unplugged were grounded in research, authenticity, and real‑world relevance, helping our community reflect deeply on screen habits and the value of reclaiming presence. Katherine connected effortlessly with learners of all ages, inviting thoughtful questions, inspiring honest self‑reflection, and encouraging practical steps toward a more balanced digital life. I highly recommend Katherine as a presenter for any school or organization seeking to spark important conversations about technology, wellbeing, and intentional living.

The entire presentation was so excellent and so helpful to myself personally and to so many of our families.

Katherine, thank you so very much for your presentation. While it is hard for parents to face the realities of today; it’s absolutely crucial we hear the voices warning us of this new age in parenting. Thank you for coming all this way and delivering such a powerful message to the parents and administrators in our community. The parents who came were moved. It was an honor for Champions for Childhood to be formally incorporated into the same event where you were the main feature, to be called out on the stage where you spoke.

Katherine Martinko was a wonderful guest and was well received by the students in her classroom visits. Her passion and expertise shone through in every interaction and response. I had the honor of being her guide for the day, and I can confidently say that she is a valuable resource for individuals and families who want to take back their control of technology. As a trained performer, I also appreciated how brilliantly her public speech was formed and delivered.

Katherine Martinko is a well-researched author and thoughtful speaker in person. The truth about children and screentime is precisely articulated in Katherine Martinko’s book and is sure to make an impact, not only on many young minds, but on society as a whole. If we are to get our youth (and parents) in a good headspace about screens and the social media dumbing effect, Martinko and her book would be a great place to start.

Your presentation was extremely engaging. (The statistics that show how much typical screen time adds up over the course of a year and over a lifetime are particularly attention grabbing and telling.) You outline the harms clearly and without shying away from just how bad the situation is, but do so without panic and while staying focused on solutions. Your non-judgmental approach to what we now know to be the mistake of giving kids access to digital technologies for entertainment and “connection” (and thereby giving the internet free access to our kids!) is just what is needed. You provide practical solutions and advice for parents to reset their family’s relationship with digital technologies regardless of where they find themselves on the spectrum of screen time and device use. Thank you! (And I’m telling all my friends about your book!)

Katherine, thank you so very much for your presentation. While it is hard for parents to face the realities of today; it’s absolutely crucial we hear the voices warning us of this new age in parenting. I appreciate your straightforward and unapologetic approach. Your agency in parenting is contagious, and candid words cut straight through the garbled excuses. I knew having you into our district was the right choice.

Katherine was very personable and transparent with my students and their questions. She gave hope that digital minimalism can happen while painting a real picture of the effects of digital use. I liked that she added some evidence-based research in her discussion. Students are still discussing her presentation in assignments. I would love to have her talk every semester to my students!!!

Katherine Martinko’s workshop on cell phone dependency/addiction was enlightening. She was clear in presenting the extreme problems we face as a world if we continue to allow children to have unlimited 24/7 access to the internet for entertainment, or for the purpose of babysitting. I recommend Mrs. Martinko to any organization, public education system, or parent group seeking a way to save the imagination of our children.

It was a wonderful discussion! We have been getting so much great feedback! Thank you so much for being part of it!

Katherine delivered a compelling presentation on the importance of digital minimalism, shedding light on the impact technology can have on our children and teens. Her insights were thought provoking and left our audience inspired to create healthier tech habits for both themselves and their families!

It was such a joy to get to meet Katherine and have her share her knowledge and gifts with so many of us here in Grand Rapids. She came in with warmth and grace, and we had so much fun getting to be a part of such a special event.

Thank you for a wonderful session. It was the most well-attended session we’ve had to date!

I think the keynote presented some great information about our students in the current generation. I think the information was insightful and a bit concerning. It really helped bring up the question of how do we help the whole child with the current technology flooding these kids lives while still providing them with the opportunities for a successful future.

Katherine delivered a compelling presentation on the importance of digital minimalism, shedding light on the impact technology can have on our children and teens. Her insights were thought-provoking and left our audience inspired to create healthier tech habits for both themselves and their families.

We are getting amazing feedback from our staff on your presentation!! Your words were compassionate and convicting, where we all took something away to apply at home and in the classroom.

While it is hard for parents to face the realities of today, it’s absolutely crucial we hear the voices warning us of this new age in parenting. I appreciate Katherine's straightforward and unapologetic approach. Her agency in parenting is contagious, and candid words cut straight through the garbled excuses. I knew having Katherine into our district was the right choice.

Katherine Martinko has written a treatise no parent should miss. How do we protect and enhance the humanity of our children in an age where they’ve been so recklessly bombarded with unfettered technology? This is a must-read book for parents in our time.

The passionate, clear-eyed, and thoroughly practical guide every parent needs to fight the good fight against the excesses of digital today.

Martinko has written a must-read for parents struggling with screen time (all of us!). Her well-researched book shows the urgent need to free kids from screens and release them into the outdoors. She offers frazzled parents achievable practical advice rooted in the challenges of parenting today.

Martinko expertly and urgently takes us deeper into the hidden horrors of too much screen time on the growing child. Then she throws us all a life preserver with the most practical, gentle advice I’ve seen.

Katherine Martinko makes the case that not only is a screen-free childhood possible, but reducing our children’s time on screen is essential for their hap- piness, sanity, and health. Thoroughly researched and beautifully written, it should be mandatory reading for all parents.

Martinko provides an in-depth, well-researched guide filled with reflections on her own journey with (but of course mostly without!) screens, and the joy she has experienced from “unplugging.” A useful guide for those keen to begin their own screen-free journey.

Real-world tools for parents to declutter their minds and set up safeguards to put themselves in control of digital technology. A digital minimalist’s must-have guide to launching your kids into a life of real connectedness and authenticity.

We must see and bust free of endlessly oppressive algorithmically derived digital shackles and learn, or relearn, how to carve our own paths. The prize is rich, intentional lives full of freedom, connection, and love. Let Katherine and Childhood Unplugged be one of your guides.

It takes an enormous effort to show our kids the world beyond their screens, but Katherine Martinko teaches us how to get it done in this practical, em- pathetic, and fascinating new guide.

If you want to prepare your kids for a future that will demand every bit of cre- ativity, compassion, and problem-solving skills humanity can muster, Martinko’s new book will help you take away all the devices that hold them in thrall.

It was a wonderful discussion! We have been getting so much great feedback! Thank you so much for being part of it.

Your presentation was extremely engaging. You outline the harms clearly, without shying away from just how bad the situation is, but do so without panic and while staying focused on solutions. Your non-judgmental approach to what we now know to be the mistake of giving kids access to digital technologies for entertainment and connection is just what is needed.

Katherine's presentation was exactly what I hoped for. She was approachable, encouraging, educated, authentic, measured yet emphatic.

I read the Anxious Generation book last summer, so I thought this was a good summary/reminder of a lot of the content from that book. It was also interesting to hear about her personal experiences as a parent, and I felt like she had some helpful applicable tips to apply in my own home.

In an age defined by hyper-digitalization and screen-time overload, Katherine Martinko offers a radical alternative by ditching the electronic devices and giving her children a play-filled, outdoorsy, analog childhood. [This] is the rallying cry we have been waiting for.

I think the keynote presented some great information about our students in the current generation. I think the information was insightful and a bit concerning. It really helped bring up the question of how do we help the whole child with the current technology flooding these kids' lives, while still providing them with the opportunities for a successful future.

Hello. I’m Katherine,
an author & speaker.
My goal is to reclaim childhood from screens.

Need a Speaker?

Let’s Work Together!

NEW BOOK TITLE

Placeholder for new book Consectetur Adipiscing.

READ THE BOOK

Childhood Unplugged: Practical Advice to Get Kids Off Screens and Find Balance

Testimonials

As seen in

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Hello. I’m Katherine, an author & speaker. My goal is to reclaim childhood from screens.

Need a Speaker?

Let’s Work Together!

NEW BOOK TITLE

Placeholder for new book Consectetur Adipiscing.

READ THE BOOK

Childhood Unplugged: Practical Advice to Get Kids Off Screens and Find Balance

Testimonials

As seen in

Hello. I’m Katherine,
an author & speaker.
My goal is to reclaim childhood from screens.