Really learning a language such as Spanish means mastering speaking, comprehension, reading and writing. All of these take practice. Here are 5 ways to practice Spanish:

1. Practice speaking by striking up conversations with people you meet who already know the language. Even if it quickly becomes clear that their English is better than your Spanish, resist the temptation to revert to your native tongue.

2. Converse with other learners of Spanish. The best place to do this is at meet-up established for this purpose. Informal conversational groups tend to have people who are at different levels of ability, so you need not be shy about speaking out, even if you're a rank beginner.

3. Practice your comprehension by listening to a Spanish language radio station or podcast, or by watching programs on Univision or similar TV channels. From time to time you can make a concentrated effort to decipher the words you're hearing, but most of the time you should just relax, defocus, and let the sounds surround you and roll through you. This is a great way to slide into the language almost subconsciously.

4. Try reading some children's books in Spanish, or better yet, a newspaper, magazine or popular novel.

5. Exchanging letters with a pen pal sounds old-fashioned, but if you can do so, you will grow immensely in your abilities and your confidence. Alternatively, join an online forum discussion that is conducted in Spanish and contribute your thoughts and opinions to the group as a way to practice writing the language. (Remember that you might have to download and install a Spanish language character set to make the special letters that you will need to use.)

These are some of the ways to practice Spanish that were helpful for me. I think they will work for you, too.