From time to time we host workshops where you can listen to talks about various topics and get some first hand experience.
Past topics were for example a softskill-workshop with the topic “Developing Leadership Skills”, some PHP- and LaTeX-workshops and an workshop about programming of linux kernel drivers.
At some workshops there the goal is not only to achieve some experience, but to create a system that can be used productively. An example would be the Gentoo Install Party.