How to improve your Spanish listening comprehension skills

"Probably the most helpful activity I did to improve my listening was to go  to Spanish-speaking countries, where I either studied or worked on. Unfortunately, however, that type of experience cannot be done on  a regular basis. What helped me the most after that was the use of
television. A  few years ago I watched a telenovela with Spanish subtitles and I found that I  could understand very clearly the spoken word with the help of the subtitles.  And using the Spanish is key - the English subtitles did not help me improve. I  found that after doing that for a year, I definitely reached a higher plateau in  my ability to comprehend.
Now I watch the news and a game show, “Que dice la gente”, without subtitles  and, while I do not get everything, I am able to understand what is going on. I also find I pick up a great deal of vocabulary this way. So - listen to TV - or to movies - using Spanish subtitles - it can  help."
 
Margaret Lewin, M.D
Student / Easy Español