Hiragana "Sa" Coloring Pages

"Sa" as in "Sakura"

The Hiragana "Sa" is the very first letter in the "Sa-Shi-Su-Se-So" line.
In the first coloring page, you can see a cherry blossom branch full of flowers for "Sa" in "Sakura."
There are flowers with five petals, and buds that are about to bloom, too.
Cherry blossoms are the famous flowers of spring that bloom around the time of school entrance ceremonies.

Two Coloring Pages

This page has two coloring pages for Hiragana "Sa".
On the first one, you will find a cherry blossom branch on the left. On the top right, there is a big outlined "Sa" and the word "Sakura." On the bottom right, there are tracing boxes for "Sa."
On the second one, lots of pictures of words starting with "Sa" are placed around a big "Sa" in the middle.
The names are written under the pictures, like monkey, fish, triangle, and plate.
Try reading each name out loud while you color!
On both coloring pages, the big "Sa" is outlined, so you can color inside it.
When you color the picture and word together, it helps you connect the letter to the word so it is easy to remember.

Hiragana "Sa" Came From the Kanji for "Left"

Hiragana were created long ago by writing Kanji in a quick, flowing way.
The Kanji that turned into Hiragana "Sa" is "左" (left).
It is said that the horizontal and diagonal lines of "左" became the top part of Hiragana "Sa." The bottom part, "工," changed into the rounded bottom line.
When you look at "左" and Hiragana "Sa" side by side, the top parts look very similar!

Tips for Writing Hiragana "Sa"

You write Hiragana "Sa" in 3 strokes at school.
The first stroke is a horizontal line that goes slightly up from left to right.
The second stroke goes down diagonally from top to bottom right, passing through the horizontal line.
For the third stroke, leave a space after the second stroke, and draw a rounded curve at the bottom.
In some books, the bottom part might be connected, but remember to leave a space when you write it at school!

Let's Find Words Starting with Hiragana "Sa"

Words starting with Hiragana "Sa" include monkey, fish, sweet potato, walk, and sugar.
Shapes can start with Hiragana "Sa" too, like "triangle" on the second coloring page.
Can you play a word chain game using words that have Hiragana "Sa"?

Color the Big "Sa" with Your Favorite Colors

Try coloring the big outlined "Sa" in pink to match the cherry blossoms.
If you color the 1st and 2nd strokes dark pink, and the 3rd stroke light pink, it makes the stroke order easy to understand!

The Cherry Blossoms Are Light Pink

Try coloring the cherry blossom petals gently with light pink.
If you make the center of the flower a little darker, it will look 3D just like a real flower!
If you color the buds a darker pink than the flowers, they will look real, too.
Color the branches dark brown, and the parts with leaves yellow-green.

For the 2nd Page, Use Lots of Colors

Color the monkey brown, and try making just its face light pink or peach.
The fish will look great in blue or red, and the triangle ruler in light blue!

Trace Each One with a Pencil

In the boxes on the bottom right, there are 8 light gray Hiragana "Sa".
Hold your pencil the right way, and trace slowly over the gray lines.
The dotted lines going up, down, left, and right in the box show you where the center of the letter is.
Trace the 3rd stroke with a small space so it does not touch the 2nd stroke.
It is okay to go slow at first, so write each one carefully.
When you finish tracing, check if you stayed inside the gray lines.
It is fun to draw a big flower mark on the one you wrote the best!

The Sakura Cherry Blossom Front moves from south to north

Cherry blossoms start blooming first in warm southern areas and slowly bloom toward the north.
The line on a map that connects the places where cherry blossoms have started to bloom is called the "Cherry Blossom Front."
Have you ever heard about it in the spring news?

Somei Yoshino cherry trees bloom before their leaves grow

The Yoshino cherry trees you often see in Japan bloom before their leaves come out.
That is why the whole tree looks bright pink!
After the petals fall, green leaves start to grow.
It is said that Yoshino cherry trees spread from around Somei Village in present-day Tokyo near the end of the Edo period.

Cherries are part of the cherry blossom family, too

Cherries that you eat in the summer grow on trees in the cherry blossom family.
They come from a different kind of tree than the cherry blossom trees you see when you go flower viewing!

Monkey in the snow

The Japanese macaque is a type of monkey shown in the second coloring page, and it lives in Japan. Its red face and red bottom are its special features!
Out of all the monkeys in the world, Japanese macaques live the furthest north.
In the winter, some Japanese macaques even soak in hot springs in the snow!