Introduction to World War I

Welcome to Military History 101!

My name is Amber, and I am the owner/head teacher of Military History 101 by Amber Dowdy.  I have a degree in History from Grand Valley State University, which is located in Michigan, USA.  Prior to becoming an Outschool teacher, I spent several years employed at a World War II submarine museum.  As the museum's Archivist, I worked daily with military history artifacts, I learned military history stories, and I had hands on experiences with the preservation of a real life American, Gato-class submarine that served during the second World War.  While I still find myself involved with the museum as a volunteer, I discovered several years ago that my passion is helping children to understand the military events of our past.  I enjoy linking events together historically through factual contextualization and the examination of causes and effects.  

I think that history is one of the most valuable things that we can teach our children, as the events of the past are constantly impacting the world today, even if we do not realize it.  

In my spare time, I enjoy playing slow pitch softball, cooking new things, and reading historical fiction novels.  In my home, I have two sweet kids of my own, and a bearded dragon.

My main class focus is on military history.  You will find classes from our organization about submarines, World War II, World War I, spies, and other topics.  We also teach a semester long American History class.  In addition to our semester class, we teach one six week class, several four week classes, as well as one time and ongoing classes.  All courses are lecture based, with time for students to ask questions, make comments, and interact with both the instructor and other students if they desire.  Military History 101 does not require that participants interact, but it is always encouraged.  We find that students who participate in class often have a more enjoyable and educational experience.  We create a powerpoint presentation for each course to help guide the lesson and keep the class on topic.  We also typically show students 2-3 short videos in class that are relevant to the topic that we are discussing.  All videos will add to the context of the course, and will be used to enrich the class.    

Please feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions or comments.  I am always happy to help.


I have recently expanded and added new educators to my organization, Military History 101.  I am looking forward to bringing you engaging content with enthusiastic instructors that can talk about all realms of military history! 

All instructors in Military History 101 are historians (with a minimum of a Bachelor's Degree in a history related field) or military veterans.  Each instructor has been through a background check, Outschool's training program, and an additional training program that has been developed by Amber Dowdy to ensure high-quality content and content delivery.   If you have any questions regarding specific classes or educators, please feel free to contact us at any time.  All inquiries will be fielded by Amber Dowdy.