The Transparent Computer, a computer simulation designed to teach programming concepts to non-programmers, provides a graphic representation of the computer and illustrates information flow within the units of the computer. The emphasis of the simulation is on the acquisition and application of concepts and comprehension of the structuring of output through the execution of the program's statements, not on learning the technical and syntactic aspects of a large computer language. A study was conducted with fourth and sixth grade students to determine whether this type of simulation could be used to teach basic programming concepts to the non-programmers population. All students were found to be able to program the Transparent Computer and run their own programs within a short period of time, whether or not their pretests had shown any previous programming experience. The study results suggest that the Transparent Computer is the kind of concrete model whose transparency, interactivity, concreteness, and simplicity provide an efficient method for teaching basic programming. A 13-item bibliography is provided. (EW)