Alphabet "A" Coloring Pages

"A" is for "Apple"

Alphabet "A" is the very first letter of the 26 letters in the alphabet.
The word for this coloring page is Apple. It means ringo in English.
On the left side, there is a big, round apple with a stem and one leaf.
Underneath it, the word "Apple" is written in outline letters, with the Katakana reading too.
First, let's say "Apple" out loud, and then start coloring!

How to write big "A" and small "a"

Capital "A" is written in 3 strokes.
For stroke ①, go from the top slanted down to the left. For stroke ②, go from the same top spot slanted down to the right.
For stroke ③, draw a horizontal line from left to right a little below the middle, and you are done!
Lowercase "a" takes 2 strokes. For stroke ①, draw a circle counterclockwise from the top right. For stroke ②, draw a vertical line from top to bottom on the right side of the circle.
Count the 4 lines from top to bottom as line 1, line 2, line 3, and line 4. The dark 3rd line is the baseline where letters sit.
Capital letters go from line 1 to line 3. Lowercase "a" is a short letter that goes from line 2 to line 3.

The name of Alphabet "A" and its sound in words

The name of Alphabet "A" is "Ay".
But the "a" in "apple" is not read as "Ay". It sounds like something between "ah" and "eh".
Open your mouth wide to the sides, keep your mouth in an "eh" shape, and say "ah". You will get a close sound!
In this way, the name of a letter and the sound it makes in a word can be different.
The way to learn by connecting letters and sounds is called Phonics.
Try saying it to a rhythm: "A says ah, ah, Apple!"

Other words starting with Alphabet "A"

In the middle on the right, there are 3 small pictures of words that start with Alphabet "A".
Ant is an ari, Airplane is a hikouki, and Alligator is a kind of wani.
Ant and Alligator start with a sound close to "ah", just like apple.
Only Airplane starts with "air", which is a little different.
Try finding more words that start with Alphabet "A" with someone at home, and say them together!

For the big Alphabet "A", match the colors of the stroke order

Color inside the outlines of the big Alphabet "A" and "a" at the top right with your favorite colors.
The stroke order numbers are written in red for ①, blue for ②, and green for ③.
If you color the left diagonal line of Alphabet "A" red, the right diagonal line blue, and the line across green, you can see the writing order right away!

How to color the apple and small pictures

Red is the usual choice for the apple, but there are yellow-green and yellow apples, too!
If you color the apple red, make the top part a little darker and leave a little white space in the middle. It will look nice and shiny!
Let's color the stem brown and the leaf green.
It is nice to color the ant black or dark brown, and the airplane white or light blue with different colors for just the windows.
If you color the alligator green or dark green, and make the bumpy pattern on its back a little darker, it will look super real!

Take your time tracing with a pencil

At the bottom right, there are 4 light gray Alphabet "A"s and 4 "a"s in a row.
Please trace them with a pencil, not with colored pencils.
Take your time and trace in the correct stroke order: ①, then ②, then ③.
The trick is to make sure the bottom of the letter rests on the 3rd dark line!
When you finish tracing, try writing them by yourself in the open space on the right!

Finally, let's read the words

When you finish coloring, try coloring the word "Apple" on the left in red or green, too.
Point at Alphabet "A" with your finger and read them out loud in order: "A, A, Apple," "Ant," "Airplane," and "Alligator."
Connecting the pictures, letters, and sounds will make them much easier to remember!

Alphabet "A" Was Originally a Cow's Head

People say that a long time ago, the letter Alphabet "A" looked like a cow's head.
If you turn a cow's face with two pointy horns upside down, it looks like Alphabet "A"!
Its shape changed little by little over a long time to become the Alphabet "A" we use today.

Alligator and Crocodile

In Japanese, both are called "wani," but in English, people use different names: Alligator and Crocodile.
Alligators have a wide and round snout.
When they close their mouths, you can easily see a crocodile's bottom teeth from the outside, but you cannot see an alligator's teeth very well.

There Are 2 Ways to Write the Lowercase "a"

The "a" on this coloring page has a circle and a straight line, which is easy to write by hand.
But in books and on signs, you often see an "a" with a little roof over the circle.
They are both the same "a"!
When you go outside, try to spot them and see which shape they use!