After all, the chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway Inc knows a thing or two about making and investing a few bob.

Luckily for some American children, they are going to hear the wise words of Buffet on their televisions. The famed investor has agreed to do a voiceover for a children's cartoon called the Secret Millionaire's Club. The cartoon, which will be broadcast on the CBS television network, aims to promote financial literacy among children.

Until the Secret Millionaire's Club comes to Ireland, children here will have to learn their financial, savings and investment advice from less illustrious quarters. Thanks to a booming economy here, children and teenagers are finding that they have more and more money. The tightness in the labour force means more part-time jobs for teenagers and more cash. Disposable cash among teenagers especially are at levels previous generations could only dream of. Luxury goods manufacturers, the service industry and the banks know that too.

But while kids here may not have the sage advice of a Warren Buffet, that's not to say that they are being left to their own devices to fritter away the hard-earned cash from the Saturday job, the pocket money and allowances from their parents or the increasingly princely sums that first holy communion and confirmation almost certainly guarantee.

Schools have taken the lead in educating children about the realities of managing money. Business studies, and economics are part and parcel of the school curriculum as well as tried and tested subjects like home economics.

To complement the school curriculum, the Irish Bankers Federation (IBF) has designed a variety of documents to promote financial understanding among children and to give teenagers grounding in financial responsibility.

These resources, designed by an education consultant, have proved very popular with teachers and pupils over the years at both primary and secondary level, " said the IBF advisor in retail member services, Louise O'Mahony.

The IBF's Money-Go-Round programme is designed for primary school children and aims to help foster in pupils an early understanding of money, its value, its use and management. With the aid of video, CD ROM, activity pages, wallcharts and replica money, the programme gives a basic introduction to the financial system and services.

Its Paymaster programme has been developed in conjunction with the country's retail banks and building societies. It is a post-primary school resource programme tailored to the business studies, junior certificate syllabus and home economics Leaving Certificate syllabus. It is designed to help students understand personal finance management, budgeting, payment methods and sensible borrowing.

?We have found that to be an excellent resource and it complements the text book and it provides very much up to date financial information. It makes it more interesting, " said Caroline McHale, president of the Business Studies Teachers' Association of Ireland.

But the idea is not just to educate budding bank managers or investment analysts for their chosen careers. The aim is to give a broad understanding of finance to a wider audience for now and later on in life, according to O'Mahony.

Students can be very focused on their exams and then suddenly they find themselves out in the real world.

So the aim is to get them to think about the practical things, to prepare them to go out into the real world and not be blinded by financial products and that they realise the differences between different cards and accounts and know how to save."

As well as giving students an understanding of personal finance, it empowers them to take control of their own finances, aids decision-making so that it less likely for them to make mistakes in the future and get into debt they cannot manage, according to O'Mahony.

?It is common sense but it is something you have to do yourself and encourages you to go in and develop a relationship with the bank and encourage you to read your statement and to manage your finances properly."

Although the IBF no longer employs a schools liaison officer to visit schools individually, the programmes for primary and post-primary schools are still very much live, according to O'Mahony.

Our bank brief is issued three times a year to teachers and is designed to complement the Leaving Certificate Business Studies course. It tends to be very up to date and would deal with topical issues and ideas that would spark classroom discussions in the same way the civics classes used to do.

Recent issues have covered topics such as saving, online security and surcharging on credit cards."

The BSTAI is currently working with the Irish Financial Services Regulatory Authority to design a financial services education resource for transition year students to supplement the programmes already in place.

IFSRA already produces its Money Tips for Students guide for third level, which is essentially a crash course in financial services and budgeting.

Individually, banks are also providing services for a younger generation. AIB's Just for Kids website introduces a basic understanding of money and financial concepts to children aged between seven and 12. Its Level 2 website for second level students provides tips for managing money, controlling spending and learning about banking as well as offering a mobile phone top-up service and telephone and internet banking. It also introduces students to topics such as time management, goal setting and homework along with carrying entertainment reviews. Its website for third level students has money management tips, information on grants and tax relief.

Of course, it could be argued that the banks are not doing this solely for altruistic reasons. Any bank ignoring this sector is turning its back on a profitable market segment now and into the future.

Five years ago, a study by Datamonitor that looked at teenage online spending across seven EU countries and the US found that teenagers spent $483 million over the internet in 2000. With internet penetration having mushroomed since then, the figures for teenage spending online have grown dramatically.

If traditional players ignore teenagers they face losing future, profitable customers and they will face an uphill struggle against new, 'cooler' brands, " said Datamonitor's senior financial services analyst Julie Cunningham.

No doubt, Warren Buffet would agree.