Multiplicative session 1 - eval

I did not feel that this session went well.  I can't put my finger on exactly what it was but I can identify a few areas that I would change for next time.  I think as a kind of summary, I needed to think more about hooking them into the activities.  They got started and sometimes engaged but I just started the activities hoping that they would get going and enjoy doing it.  This will not work for everyone.
The starting activity was quite good but had that problem.  I needed to get them to gel as a team for a bit with a simple activity such as find this number.  I could have made the reference to the number simple or complicated.  When they had a direct competitive aspect to it, they all performed better.  There are lots of ways to explore this type of activity.  For example, is it possible to produce a closed loop of 8 cards?  That could be extended.  The problem is why create the loop?  what would be in it for them?  The competitive element helped but not massively. They needed to buy in from the beginning.
I like the idea of the prize with 3 possible amounts but again not enough of a hook.  I think a race would have been better.  They could have had 10 squares and either started with 10000 each day or £100 doubled each day or 1p multiplied by 10 each day.  I could then ask which starting amounts would make this fair.  With a grid or two they could have taken charge of one of them and gone on day by day until the end. We could have compared as a group what happened to the numbers.  That would have led on to the big numbers activity a lot more easily.

It would have been good to have the number words and see if they could read them first and then decide what order they would go in and how many zeros.
I really would need one slider between two also.  Then they could create a number and get their partner to read it off and change partners and numbers and test someone else.  Maybe one each.  It would be good to have a few of them.
It would also be good to start this like I started with M this morning.  Start with multiplying 1 by 10 again and again.  I could also check if they can link it to the scale of the universe video.
I could then try 15 or something like that and do it again.  That way I could have drilled the numbers.  I still need to think about how I could do that with them all as I couldn't lead the whole group in that kind of chant.
The end game was pretty good once it got going.  I didn't get them to find the cards (which would have been good) or read them out except in a few cases.  I could get them to act in teams and give points for the size of the number for example and for reading them out.  The pattern was clearly seen by most also.

Key takeaways
Hooks
think through actual things that will be done in activity and any manipulatives needed
Add competition or collaboration.