Saddle River Day School Advanced Classwork Opportunities: Personalized Pathways to Academic Excellence

“Individualized instruction” is more than a phrase at Saddle River Day School—it’s a promise brought to life through meaningful, personalized academic pathways. One of the most distinctive ways SRDS fulfills this commitment is by offering students the opportunity to begin Upper School and even college-level coursework while still in Middle School.

Students who demonstrate exceptional aptitude in a subject are identified by their teachers and, through a combination of placement assessments, strong academic performance, and faculty recommendations, may enroll in advanced classes as early as sixth grade. This accelerated pathway allows motivated learners to begin AP coursework before entering ninth grade, opening doors to deeper exploration, research, and academic distinction.

Maanya Desai, '29

Maanya Desai, '29 exemplifies how this opportunity can shape both confidence and achievement. As part of the first cohort placed into Algebra I in sixth grade, she continued her accelerated journey by completing Geometry over the summer, followed by Algebra II Honors in seventh grade. By eighth grade, she was enrolled in AP Precalculus, and now, as a ninth grader, she is thriving in AP Calculus. Her science pathway mirrors this momentum, progressing from Honors Biology and Honors Chemistry in Middle School to Honors Physics—typically an eleventh-grade course—by ninth grade.

The benefits of this academic acceleration extend far beyond the classroom. Students gain flexibility in their Upper School schedules to pursue independent research, leadership opportunities, and SRDS’s signature Gateway Diploma, a rigorous program centered on real-world experience and in-depth inquiry. High performance on AP exams can also lead to college credit, allowing students to advance more quickly and tailor their collegiate studies to their passions.

Equally important is the personal growth that accompanies academic challenge. Maanya reflects that learning alongside older peers helped her build confidence, sharpen time management skills, and develop resilience. Early exposure to AP-level rigor made future coursework feel less intimidating and more empowering.

She credits the dedicated SRDS faculty—teachers who challenge, support, and inspire—as central to her success. In a close-knit community where educators know students as individuals, guidance extends beyond academics to mentorship and encouragement.

At SRDS, individualized instruction means understanding the whole student and providing the right opportunities at the right time. As Maanya shares, “This environment has really shaped me into who I am today.”

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Now is the right time to invest in your child's education. At SRDS we teach students how to think and not what to think, and we prepare students to be innovators, thinkers, and leaders.

To register for an event, please email or call Kris Sweeny in the Office of Admissions ksweeny@saddleriverday.org or (201) 327-4050.

Saddle River Day School

Pre-K3 to Grade 12

147 Chestnut Ridge Road  •  Saddle River, NJ 07458  •  Tel: 201.327.4050

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About Saddle River Day School

Established in 1957, Saddle River Day School is a Pre-K3 through grade 12, co-ed, independent school serving just under 600 students. The school provides a robust curriculum and inspires students to achieve academic and personal excellence by teaching them how to think and not what to think. Each division (Lower PreK3-4th; Middle 5th-8th; Upper 9th-12th) offers a signature yearlong research program.

Saddle River Day also offers 30+ advanced placement and honors level courses, a full range of visual and performing arts as well as interscholastic athletics (grades 6th-12th), and highly individualized college counseling to encourage students to discover their passions and prepare them for whatever comes next. SRDS graduates are thriving at colleges like Duke, Columbia, Cornell, Georgetown, Johns Hopkins, NYU, Northwestern, Villanova and Wake Forest.

For more information about the project or Saddle River Day School, please visit saddleriverday.org.