Hiragana "E" Coloring Pages

The "E" in "Enpitsu" (Pencil)

The hiragana "E" is the 4th letter in "A-I-U-E-O"!
The 1st coloring page has a single sharpened pencil for the "E" in "Enpitsu" (Pencil).
Pencils are tools you use almost every day to write letters and draw pictures.
Try doing the tracing on this page with a real pencil, too!

2 Coloring Pages

There are 2 coloring pages for Hiragana "E" on this page.
The 1st page has a sharpened pencil on the left. On the top right, there is a big outlined "E" and the word "Enpitsu". On the bottom right, there are tracing boxes for "E".
The 2nd coloring page has a big "E" in the middle, surrounded by lots of pictures of things that start with "E".
You can see Enogu (Paints), Ehon (Picture book), Edamame, and Eki (Train station). Each name is written under its picture.
Try reading each name out loud as you color them in!
The big "E" on both coloring pages is drawn with an outline, so you can color inside it.
When you color while looking at the pictures and words together, it helps you match the letter with the word so you can remember it easily!

Hiragana "E" Came from the Kanji "衣"

Hiragana were created by writing Kanji characters in a fast, cursive way.
The original Kanji for "E" is "衣".
This Kanji means clothes or things you wear.
If you quickly smooth out the lines of "衣", it turns into the shape of "E" with a dot on top and a wavy line below!

Tips for Writing Hiragana "E"

Hiragana "E" is written with 2 strokes.
For the 1st stroke, draw a short line at the top.
For the 2nd stroke, go across, slide down to the left, turn back to go right, and end with a smooth sweep to the right.
If you change directions clearly at the turns, you will write a very neat Hiragana "E"!

Let's Find Words That Start with "E"

Words that start with "E" include Eki (Train station), Ehon (Picture book), Eda (Branch), Egao (Smiling face), and Ensoku (School trip).
Entotsu (Chimney) on the 2nd coloring page also starts with "E"!
"E" is also often used inside words to mean "picture".
Look for tools with "E" in them, like picture books and paints!

Color the big "え" in your favorite colors

For the big outlined "え", try using one color for the short top line and another for the long bottom line.
The bottom line turns many times, so it would look wonderful if you change colors at every turn to make a rainbow!
Color the corners slowly and carefully.

Color the pencil handle any color you like

Try coloring the pencil handle in your favorite color, like green, yellow, or red.
If you color the sharpened part light brown and the lead tip black or gray, it will look just like a real pencil!
Adding a slightly darker color along the lines of the handle will make it look 3D.

On the second sheet, check out the paint palette

If you color each round spot in the paint box with a different color, it will look like real paints!
Try coloring the edamame yellow-green, and the train station roof red or navy blue.

Trace Hiragana "E" one by one with a pencil

In the boxes on the bottom right, there are 8 light gray Hiragana "E".
Hold your pencil correctly and trace over the gray lines slowly.
The dotted lines inside the boxes show you where the middle is.
The second stroke is long, so it is okay to slow down at the turns.
It is fine to go slow at first, so write each one carefully.
When you finish tracing, check if you stayed inside the gray lines.
You can even draw a big flower mark next to the one you wrote the best!

Pencil lead is made of graphite and clay

Pencil lead is made by mixing a black material called graphite with clay and baking it.
The less clay there is, the softer the lead gets, and it makes darker lines.
Letters on pencils like "HB," "B," and "2B" show how hard and dark they are.

Hexagon barrels do not roll easily

Many pencil barrels are shaped like a hexagon.
Hexagons do not roll easily on your desk, and they are easy to hold with your fingers.
There are also pencils with round or triangle barrels, so look for them!

There used to be 2 sounds for Hiragana "E"

Long ago, in addition to today's Hiragana "E", there was also a character written as "ゑ".
It is hardly used today, and it was combined into Hiragana "E".
You might see it once in a while on very old shop signs.

Edamame are baby soybeans

The edamame on the second coloring page are picked when soybeans are still young and green.
If you grow them longer in the field and dry them, they become regular soybeans used to make tofu and miso.
It is cool that they are the same bean, but we eat them in different ways!