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I'm currently taking a Methods of Teaching Science class that recently required students to create a 3D representation of an alien from an assigned celestial body.  The class was split up into many groups of two, and then each group was assigned a celestial body (included were all of the planets other than Earth, asteroids, comets, Titan, IO, and the Moon).  Then, the students were asked to create an alien that could live on this assigned place.  In creating the aliens, each group had to think about what the alien would need to survive, and, in doing so, closely examined their assigned place by learning about the atmosphere, gravity, climate, surface features, etc. of their assigned planet.  Groups then presented their alien to the class and spoke about how the alien could live on the assigned place.  It was a lot of fun, and the class learned a lot about each of the different planets  and other celestial bodies due to the elements included in each alien/presentation.  My question is, do you think this would actually work well in an elementary classroom?  Would you assign this type of project in your class?

I do something very similar to this in an informal camp setting with elementary to middle school age youth. It works quite well in that context, as I have small numbers (no more than 8 campers) and do not have any set curriculum that must be covered.

I think this activity would work in a fourth grade classroom. I think the students have enough independence at this point to work in groups and be creative. I think this was an awesome activity because the students had to think of so many different aspects, and it also allowed them to be creative.