Valley View Elementary School was built at the same time as Maple Grove and Owyhee Schools, and opened in September 1969. Valley View and Owyhee were both built with "pod" classrooms, wherein three classes of students meet in wings connected to a central meeting area where supplies and audio-visual equipment are kept. The school's eighteen classrooms have movable walls and were originally meant to facilitate team teaching.

Valley View is located on Milwaukee Street, which has become one of the busiest streets in Boise. The school is also just down the road from Capital High School, and well-organized crossing guard teams have their jobs cut out for them in the early morning hours. The school has a large playground which borders the adjoining neighborhood.

Valley View probably got its name from the Valley View School District which once existed in West Boise. This District, for which the formal name was Common District # 7, was annexed into the Boise District in 1941.