How to Make a Good Pokémon Card Trade

Look in the upper right-hand corner of your child's Pokémon card. The higher the "HP," or hit points, the better (scale: 30-120).

Check out the bold black number located lower down on the right-hand side of the card. This represents "Attack Damage," and the higher it is, the better (scale: 10-120).

Look for the tiny rarity symbol on the bottom right-hand corner. A star is rare, a diamond represents an uncommon card, and a filled-in circle is a common card.

Be sure to notice the card's background. The shiny holofoil cards are very rare and much prized.

Compare these variables with the ones of the card, or cards, being offered in the trade. How do they match up?

Resign yourself to the fact that Junior still may not give a hoot how much more valuable his card is than his trading partner's; he just really digs Dugtrio and he'll gladly give up his rare Japanese import, Mew, to get him.