Observational Writing
Adapted by K.E. Ogden
from Reading Critically, Writing Well
What is Observational
Writing?
 Observational writing is writing “based on fresh
observation or direct investigation.”
 Observational writing employs descriptive detail and the
writer’s impressions to convey feeling and emotion
 An observational essay “seeks to inform readers about
the subject but to present information in an engaging,
even entertaining way.”
What are the challenges of
Observational Writing?
Requires you to:
--Pay close attention
--Use your descriptive senses
--Take a questioning and
inquiring stance
Good observational writing uses
exhaustive notes compiled
by the writer. These notes
are analyzed and then
synthesized to produce the
best descriptive details for
the subject of the writing.
What types of writing
situations might require
Observational Writing?
Examples of some writing
situations:
 Profile a local artist for an Art History course
 Convey the feeling of a sports event for a Health &
Science course or a Journalism class
 Investigate a local business for your Business class
(ethnography)
 Interview a well-respected individual in a field of your
choosing for a Social Studies course (feature)
A Guide to Reading
Observational Essays
Reading observational essays and analyzing how these
essays are put together will help us to write our own
observational essays
Reading “SOUP” from The
New Yorker
Read this essay like a writer:
1. Highlight the words and phrases
the writer uses to describe
Albert Yeganeh. (Not direct
dialogue, but how the writer
conveys an impression about
Yeganeh).
Read the essay like a writer:
How do these descriptions of Yeganeh’s
gestures and motions help readers to
envision Yeganeh as he talks?
Reading “Soup” from The
New Yorker
Reading Like a Writer:
2. Highlight, in a different color,
words and phrases that describe
the place: Soup Kitchen
International.
Reading Like a Writer:

Which of the senses do each of the
descriptions appeal to?

Which descriptions stay with you?
Why?
Paired Break: Analyze
“Soup”
 Skim the article and identify where the information
came from—direct observation, interviews, background
research
 Reread paragraphs 3 and 6 to see how the explanatory
strategy of “listing” is used. Why do you think the
author lists so many soups?
 Look at paragraph 2; what does the strategy of
Compare/Contrast add to the essay?
How is the essay organized?
 Organizing an observational essay usually relies on
“topical” organization (related information is grouped
together)
 OR
 “Narrative” information (in which a story is told)
Which organizational
strategy does “Soup” utilize?
Outline each of the paragraphs to see how the writer is
organizing each of the paragraphs. What is the organization
of the entire essay?
Which role will you perform?
 Spectator Observer
 Participant Observer
Acts like a reporter
Become an insider for a time in
order to experience the
“world” being observed
Watches and listens but stays
outside of the activity
Join in on the activity, event, or
place
What are the advantages and
disadvantages of each role?
Which “role” has the writer of SOUP employed? What are
its effects? Find a passage that supports this analysis.
ASSUMPTIONS
 Another word for “bias”
 Conveys the writer’s attitudes about the event
 Conveys the writer’s feelings and emotions about the
event
--Look closer at SOUP. Use your highlighter to note where
you see the writer’s assumptions, bias, feelings, and
emotions in the work.
Key Ideas
 Please quickly summarize the key ideas I’ve just shared
about OBSERVATIONAL essays by writing a short
paragraph describing the concepts important to a clear
understanding of Observational Essays.
Thank You!