This study examined the effect of various intervention contexts on the ability of young children (ages 3 and 4 years) with language impairments to effectively direct communications to a partner and to vary communicative intentions. The six children in the study were either nonverbal or in the early stages of developing verbal communication and all exhibited developmental delays. The children's verbal and nonverbal communications were examined in five contexts: gross motor play, unstructured play, procedural/daily living, object manipulation, and symbolic play. Child productions were videotaped and classified. The study found that context affected frequency of communication, communicative intent, and percent of communications directed to a partner. Specifically, more communications were produced during gross motor play than in the other contexts. Most of these communications were of the behavior regulating type. Unstructured play and object manipulation contexts yielded few directed communications. The procedural context produced the lowest percent of communications. Unstructured play, symbolic play, and object manipulation produced a wider variety of communicative intentions than other contexts. Students were more willing to accept clinical attempts to expand play during the unstructured play context. (DB)