This article considers the delicate positioning of social studies in a context of curriculum integration. The common primary school practice of integrating social studies as part of a wider inquiry may inadvertently challenge the integrity of the discipline. The article outlines a vignette of a civic engagement inquiry by a new entrant and Years 1/2 class as an example of the authors’ efforts to balance competing forces that simultaneously conserve and disturb social studies’ disciplinary boundaries in a context of curriculum integration.