This study involved examining the nature and scope of numeracy, distilling out the important features, and representing these features in sample numeracy materials. The paper examines the precise nature of numeracy and its scope in enhancing the educational experiences of adult learners. It is intended to discuss the characteristics of the adult learner--those that help learning and those that may potentially hinder the learning process. A set of guidelines are outlined which include suggestions for guiding the development of literature and the findings of an evaluation process which was undertaken among practicing adult numeracy tutors. (Contains 58 references.) (ASK)