Salt and Paint Kids Craft

So Jack wanted to do a craft and I wanted something easy with minimal clean up. I just hate it when I spend more time setting up and cleaning up then Jack's actual interest in the craft. But the paint and salt activity is a real winner. Jack has already done it three times this week and still likes it!

So here is the link to the craft.http://familyfun.go.com/crafts/crafts-by-age/preschool-crafts/absorbing-artwork-940839/

I think it is definitely important to follow the instructions and use card stock paper. Jack likes dropping the water so much that by the end his paper is dripping wet and the card stock really holds up well.
So basically you grab a piece of card stock paper, make a random design with glue, then pour salt on the glue covering all the glue. It is important to shake off the excess salt... the first time I didn't do this and it didn't quite work right.

Here is what it looks like with the glue and salt.

The next step is color your water. I put one tablespoon of water in a bowl and added about 5 drops of food coloring. I gave Jack three colors to work with. Then with a dropper, Jack dropped the water onto the glue. If you do this slowly, you can see the colored water "travel" on the glue. That is really cool. I liked that part, unfortunately, just when I think jack should stop because his picture looks great, he starts really letting the colored water go... the entire tray is filled with water. This is also a time to point out that using a cookie sheet is key to keeping colored water from going all over the table and floor. Thanks Family Fun, for that suggestion.

Jack's colored water "traveling"

This is when I think Jack's picture looks awesome and he should stop, but he never does.

This is how Jack likes to leave his picture.

Overall, I would rate this as a great craft for kids!