Science fairs are held in many elementary, junior high, and high schools. Typically they are thought of as a competitive event where students display science projects. Publications occasionally print accounts of successful science fairs, but these articles are usually based on opinions rather than on research. The purpose of this study is to report desirable characteristics of a school science fair according to available research. The characteristics include: (1) type of project to be entered in the fair; (2) determination of students who should participate; (3) relative merits of competitive or noncompetitive fairs; (4) value of working individually or in groups; (5) motivators offered; and (6) amount of work expected to be done outside of the classroom. The document includes the summaries of 35 articles and a glossary. Several recommendations are stated: students should do experimental projects; students of all grade levels should participate; competition with clear goals can be an effective motivator in science fairs; the most effective structures include cooperative student projects; and better quality projects can be expected when children work on them outside of the classroom. (CW)