Last updated on August 26th, 2026 at 08:59 am
A Brazilian couple has been sentenced to 50 days in jail after homeschooling their two daughters according to their own religious and educational values, including choosing not to teach state-approved programs on gender ideology.
Audato and Ieda Denardi were convicted of “intellectual neglect” after a São Paulo court concluded that their homeschooling program failed to adequately cover subjects including “gender and sex education” and “tolerance and diversity.”
The couple’s daughters, now 15 and 11, have been homeschooled since 2020. According to the family, both girls have made significant academic progress, speak multiple languages, and are accomplished piano players.
Nevertheless, the court found their education insufficient in areas considered important by the state. The judge also pointed to what he considered inadequate cultural exposure, including the fact that the girls did not enjoy popular Brazilian sertanejo music or trap, a subgenre of hip-hop.
The Denardis began homeschooling during the COVID-19 pandemic after becoming dissatisfied with remote public education. They say homeschooling allowed them to improve their daughters’ academic performance while incorporating their Christian faith and family values into their education.
The conviction is particularly controversial because the prosecutor in the case recommended that the parents be acquitted. An independent educational psychologist reportedly found no evidence of neglect, while the daughters themselves described receiving rigorous daily instruction.
The family is being represented by ADF International, which condemned the decision as an abuse of criminal law and an attack on parents’ ability to direct their children’s education.
The judge, however, accused the parents of using their daughters as “pawns in an ideological struggle” and criticized their decision to educate the children outside Brazil’s state-supervised system.
The 50-day prison sentence has been suspended while the family appeals. According to their supporters, the Denardis are the first Brazilian parents to receive a criminal conviction specifically for homeschooling their children.
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