Academics
CrankPals
A paper music box. Punch holes on a strip to write a tune, crank it and hear it play. Copy eight old tunes like Twinkle, Twinkle, or write your own, then print the strip for a real hand-crank music box. Some of the very first computer programs were punched paper too. Ages 6–8.
▶ Play it nowBuilt for sittings of about 15 minutes on the screen. That is our design budget, not a measurement.
Meet your mentor
Every Spark & Anvil app has a friendly mentor character that demonstrates, asks, and patiently scaffolds learning.
Mentored by Cranko
#7a4a12 Characters who teach
Meet the cast
CrankPals's friends make paper play music. Cranko turns the crank, Punchly punches the holes, Combsy is the little brass comb that sings, and Stripsy keeps the paper strip straight.
Cranko
turns the crank, and the strip moves through one beat at a time
Punchly
A mouse with a hole punch - each hole is one note, and where it sits says which note
Combsy
A lark who looks after the brass comb - short teeth sing high, long teeth sing low
Stripsy
A hedgehog who keeps the strip straight - left to right is time, bottom to top is low to high
What's inside
Learning goal
A paper music box. Punch holes on a strip to write a tune, crank it and hear it play. Copy eight old tunes like Twinkle, Twinkle, or write your own, then print the strip for a real hand-crank music box. Some of the very first computer programs were punched paper too. Ages 6–8.
Mentored by Cranko — no data leaves the device.
How CrankPals handles your kid's data
- ✅ All progress, settings, and AI-generated content stays on the device
- ✅ No analytics, no tracking, no third-party SDKs
- ✅ Free — no ads, no in-app purchases
- ✅ No personal information collected from children — in line with COPPA (updated by the 2026 FTC amendments)
- ✅ No chat with strangers — play-together rooms use a short code and preset emotes, never typed messages
For you, the grown-up
The grown-up side of CrankPals on Spark & Whetstone, our free site for grown-ups: Where the Songs Came From. They punch a paper music box; the course is how the same holes ran looms and the first computers.