SparkBlocks are low voltage and they run on standard USB-C power, the same kind that charges a phone. The electronics sit inside sealed brick housings, so there is no circuit board to touch while you build. Here is the handling you should know about.
Age
8 and up. That is the age the kits are built and graded for, and it is the age the instructions are written for.
Younger children build them all the time with a grown-up doing the fiddly bits and reading the guide. Do that alongside them rather than handing the kit over.
Small parts
Kits contain small parts and loose bricks. Keep them away from babies and toddlers who still put things in their mouths, and pack the case away between sessions rather than leaving it out.
Power and charging
- Charge and power the kits from a standard USB-C source: a phone charger, a laptop port, or a power bank. Use the cable that came with the kit, or any ordinary USB-C cable in good condition.
- Do not try to power blocks from anything other than a standard USB-C supply, and never connect them straight to a wall socket.
- Do not use a cable or a power block with a damaged connector.
- Keep the electronics dry. They are not water resistant.
If a block gets hot, or smells burnt
Stop using that block.
- Disconnect the power and let everything cool down.
- Set that block aside and do not put it back in a build, even if it seems to work afterwards.
- Email us at info@sparkblocks.ca with your order number and tell us what happened. A block that has overheated gets replaced.
This is most likely to come up with a transistor block wired the wrong way round while the battery is charging. Our early production notes explain that one in detail, and Can I damage the blocks by wiring them wrong? covers what to do about it.
The rest of the system is more forgiving. Connecting most blocks the wrong way round means the circuit does not work, which is a normal part of learning, not a problem.
Damaged blocks
If a housing has cracked, split at the seam, or come apart, stop using that block and email us. Do not tape it back together and carry on. We replace parts that fail in normal use free inside the warranty window.
The Expansion Kit remote runs on a coin cell. Keep spare and used cells out of reach of children, put used ones straight into battery recycling, and if you ever think a child has swallowed one, treat it as an emergency and get medical help immediately.
Wire tips and jumper wires
Wire Blocks and the loose Dupont jumper wires in the Expansion Kit have metal ends. They are not sharp by design, but they are thin, so it is worth a word with younger builders about not poking them at anything other than a block.
Classrooms
Two practical notes from teachers running sets:
- Charge kits between sessions rather than mid lesson, so nothing is on a cable while students are moving around.
- Count the small parts back into the tray at the end. The labelled overlay in the lid makes that quick, and it is the difference between finding a missing block on Friday and finding it in June.
Questions we cannot answer here
If you need documentation for a procurement or compliance file, email info@sparkblocks.ca and tell us what your process requires. We would rather route that to a person than publish a general answer that does not fit your case.
