Parents sentenced to prison for choosing to homeschool
Adauto and Ieda Denardi are a Brazilian couple facing 50 days in prison — for choosing to educate their daughters at home. In April 2026, a São Paulo court convicted them of “intellectual neglect,” becoming the first judge in Brazil to criminally convict parents for homeschooling. The judge ruled that their curriculum was deficient because it did not include programmes on gender and sex education. The judge also concluded the home curriculum was not sufficient in taching cultural studies because their daughters, did not enjoy trap or folk music, despite both being accomplished pianists and multilingual.
After hearing witnesses and reviewing the girls’ academic and social development, the prosecutor concluded the parents had not neglected their children and recommended the parents be acquitted. The judge disagreed — and sentenced the Denardis to 50 days in prison.
The family is now appealing to the 7 Cãmara Criminal do Tribunal de Justiça do Estado de São Paulo. ADF International is providing legal support.
Homeschooling is protected by international human rights law. It is up to parents to decide what type of education will best suit their child. Basing a criminal conviction on the lack of diversity in a homeschool curriculum is unfair and could create an irreparable injustice if it is not overturned on appeal.
— Julio Pohl, Legal Counsel for Latin America, ADF International
Parental Rights in Brazil
Currently, an estimated 70,000 children are homeschooled in Brazil. In 2019, Brazil’s Supreme Court ruled that homeschooling does not violate the constitution, but required federal legislation to regulate the practice. That legislation has not yet passed and continues to stall in Congress. For years, homeschooling families have operated in legal limbo, occasionally facing administrative penalties for failing to register children in school. The Denardis are the first parents in Brazil’s history to face criminal prosecution.
The family began homeschooling their two daughters in 2020, initially prompted by concerns about the quality of formal education during the pandemic. In the years that followed, they saw marked improvement in their daughters’ academic performance and valued the ability to incorporate their faith and family values into their children’s learning. Today, the girls excel in reading, are skilled pianists and speak multiple languages.
None of that mattered to the court. The judge explicitly accused the parents of “using their daughters as pawns in their own ideological struggle” and faulted them for excluding the state from their children’s upbringing.
The case has even drawn the attention of Brazil’s National Congress as the legal battle for parental right in education continues to simmer in the country.
The Denardi case is not an isolated incident. Regiane Cichelero, another Brazilian mother, was denied the right to homeschool her son by a state court last year. ADF International is alsolegally supporting her appeal.
“As a mother, I cannot conceive a more dictatorial state than the one that wants me in jail because I chose to exercise my right to direct the education and upbringing of my daughters. My husband and I are hopeful the court will recognize our right to choose the best education for our children and overturn this unjust conviction.” — Ieda Denardi
