Awesome! You're going to have so much fun!
Alrighty! Prepare for a barrage of information!
Grooming for show:
Trim their beak (if necessary) and nails to a good length a while before the show so they have time to be worn down into being nice and rounded on the ends again before showtime.
A few days before the show, bathe the birds. We use a laundry tub. Make sure the water is nice in warm (bear in mind that chickens have a higher body temperature then people) and they should relax after the initial shock. So much so that some birds might fall asleep, so keep a close eye on them! There are lots of options for what to use for soap. Baby shampoo, glycerin, Dawn dish soap, oatmeal dog shampoo... The list goes on and on. Do some research and see what sounds good to you or what you already have lying around.
Drying takes a long time. I wrap each chicken in a towel after they are done being bathed, finish bathing the other birds, then grab the first one to start blow drying. Most chickens like the blowdryer after they stop being terrified of if for the first few minutes. Which is good because it takes a long time to do. You will have to lift the feathers up so they start separating and drying out, and so the fluff near the base of each feather will be exposed to the air. Remember to lift their wings and dry beneath them too.
Those phoenix tails also probably need some extra maintenance, but I've never had any and have no idea what that might entail.
Showmanship:
Select one of your best quality and easiest to handle birds for showmanship. You will want to work with them regularly well in advance of the fair to teach them to pose. Hold meal worms over their heads so they stand up nice and tall and prettily and work up to getting them to do it when you hold just your fingers over their head.
The expectations for showmanship vary from fair to fair. At some, they want you to be able to talk about your bird in detail front to back, noting health problems, faults, or the lack thereof. In others, you will simply be asked questions about your bird, its breed, or chickens in general. No matter what though, you want to be able to handle your bird well and be knowledgeable about chickens.
Skillathon:
Most fairs that have this will give a theme and often post a study guide for it on their website. In my experience, if you study it at all you will already be ahead of the game. Look over it and you should do well.
Other Competitions:
For poster and egg decorating, creativity is valued. Put some extra work in and try to go in a not-obvious direction with it.
My biggest piece of advice it to involve yourself as much as you can even if you think you are getting yourself in way over your head. That goes for 4-H, the fair, and showing. The more you do, the more you learn and have fun. You will also meet lots of great people. If you do well, you can actually make a lot of money on the fair, and it looks great for college applications and scholarships.
