As an avid language learner myself, I know how important it is to vary how you learn. It's no use just staring at ancient old grammar textbooks for hours on end!
Below are a few of the things I have found work for me. Remember, though, that different things will work for different people!
1. Listening to songs in the foreign language.
I find this one very helpful indeed! Not only do I get to discover brilliant new bands and singers, but I also learn new vocabulary in a painless way! I listen to a song a few times before finding the lyrics on the internet, looking up any words I don't know in a dictionary and then repeatedly singing along until everything just sticks!
2. Watching films in the foreign language.
There will usually be subtitle options, so even if your knowledge of the other language isn't all that great, you will understand and learn.
3. Pick out some favourite actors/singers who are native speakers of the language you're trying to learn. Listen to/read interviews with them online, join their fan club (these often send you regular e-mails in the other language - and it's about someone you're interested in!)...
4. Look for websites/magazines about your favourite hobbies. You'll learn the vocabulary you'll actually need when abroad and trying to explain what your interests are!
5. Get a language penpal. It always makes the difference when you're in contact with a real person who speaks the language you're trying to learn! You'll also be able to learn a bit about their culture, and maybe teach them about yours too!
6. Make use of all the online language tests out there. If you have a grammar test, read the relevant sections in your grammar book and then find some online quizzes so you can test your understanding of what you just revised!
7. See if there are any groups/societies to do with the foreign language in your area. I'm a member of my university's French and German societies. There are regular conversation evenings, and I now have the loveliest German friend who's forever answering my pesky German-related questions!
8. If you can't join any groups/societies like the ones I've just been talking about, you could always set up some kind of group with friends learning the same foreign language. Get together for conversation sessions - make sure you only talk in the foreign language! Have some study sessions together too - you never know, your friend might understand that tricky grammar point you just don't follow! You could also have themed parties when you all have to dress up as people from films/books in the foreign language, try making and eating food from a country where the language you're learning is spoken...the possibilities are endless, really!
9. Start an online journal. Only write in it in the language you're trying to learn! You could also get native speakers to point out mistakes for you, if you'd like.
10. If you're having difficulty learning particular words, see if there's anything you can associate with the word to help you remember it. For example, to remember the third person singular conjugation "geht" in German, an English speaker might think about an open gate swinging in the wind.
