Fidel FriendsIntroducing My Fidel Coloring Book: An Amharic Alphabet Coloring Book for Kids
We're so excited to share something many parents have asked for: a book your child can hold, colour and keep. My Fidel Coloring Book is an Amharic alphabet coloring book that walks kids through every letter family of the fidel (ፊደል), one big, friendly letter at a time. It's coming soon to Amazon, and you can follow along on our books page.
What's inside My Fidel Coloring Book
- All 34 letter families, the same families Fikir teaches in our letter videos.
- A big letter to colour for each family, with a picture word to colour alongside it, like በግ (sheep) for በ.
- A tracing page for every family with all seven sounds, so kids practise ሀ ሁ ሂ ሃ ሄ ህ ሆ with their own hands.
- A full fidel chart to look at, colour in and refer back to.
- A Fidel Champion certificate to celebrate finishing the book.
The details
| Format | Details |
|---|---|
| Type | Paperback |
| Size | 8.5 × 11 inches |
| Pages | 74 |
| Ages | 3 to 7 |
| Price | $12.99 |
| Availability | Coming soon to Amazon |
Why an Amharic alphabet coloring book works
Colouring and tracing are simple activities, but they do a lot of quiet work for early learners:
- Slowing down to look. Colouring inside a big letter means your child spends real time with its shape: the legs, the loops, the little marks that change the vowel.
- Hands help memory. Tracing a letter while saying its sound connects movement, sight and sound at once.
- Building pencil control. Colouring and tracing strengthen the small hand muscles children need for writing in any language.
- Calm, screen-free practice. It's a nice balance to video time, and great for waiting rooms, car trips and quiet afternoons.
- Pride of ownership. A finished page is something to show off. A finished book, with a certificate, is a big achievement.
How to use the book for letter learning
You'll get the most from the book if you treat it as part of a gentle routine, not a race to the last page. Here's a pattern that works well alongside our videos:
- Watch the family's episode together. Let Fikir introduce the letter and sing its seven sounds. Start with the ሀ family.
- Colour the big letter. While your child colours, chat about the picture word and say the letter's sound together.
- Trace the seven sounds. On another day, do the tracing page. Say each sound out loud as it's traced.
- Find it on the chart. Look for the family on the chart at the back of the book, or on our free printable fidel chart, and colour that row.
- Review before moving on. Flip back to earlier pages and "read" the big letters together.
Our post on teaching the Amharic alphabet at home in 10 minutes a day has a weekly rhythm that fits the book perfectly.
Tips for different ages
- Ages 3 to 4: Focus on colouring and naming the picture word. Tracing can be finger-tracing at first. Chunky crayons are your friend.
- Ages 5 to 6: Add pencil tracing and saying all seven sounds. Let your child choose which family to do next from ones they've already watched.
- Age 7: Challenge them to write a sound from memory after tracing, or to find the letters of their own name in the chart.
Don't worry about colouring "inside the lines". The learning is in the looking, saying and tracing, not in a perfect page.
Gift ideas
A fidel coloring book makes a meaningful, affordable gift for children with Ethiopian or Eritrean heritage, and for any child curious about the world's writing systems. Some occasions to keep in mind:
- Birthdays: pair the book with a new box of crayons and a printed fidel chart.
- እንቁጣጣሽ (Enkutatash), Ethiopian New Year: a fresh book for a fresh year, in September. Learn more in the Ethiopian calendar explained for kids.
- ገና (Genna), Ethiopian Christmas on January 7: a lovely stocking or basket filler.
- ጥምቀት (Timket): a quiet activity for the family gathering.
- From grandparents: a gift that says "this is our language, and it's yours too".
- For teachers and Sunday schools: a simple resource for heritage-language classes.
Get ready now
While you wait for the book, you can start today for free. Print the free fidel chart, watch the letter family episodes, and try our list of first Amharic words for toddlers. Keep an eye on our books page for the Amazon link as soon as My Fidel Coloring Book is available.