The purpose of this study was to understand the experience of co-teachers in an elementary setting, namely the general education teachers and the special education or English as second language (ESL) teachers who co-taught with them. In particular, this study sought to learn the perspectives and patterns within the co-teaching experience. A qualitative approach was used to collect and analyze data from six teachers, in three co-teaching teams, through interviews and observations. Participants were interviewed independently and later with their co-teaching partner, and each co-teaching team was observed twice: once during a co-planning session and again during a co-taught lesson. All collected data were analyzed using the constant comparison approach, with reflective practices throughout the study in the form of a researcher's log in which descriptive data were recorded. The findings were revealed through analysis of each co-teaching team as an individual case study, as well as a cross-case analysis. Each individual case study uncovered a number of themes relating to each co-teaching team's relationship. Among these findings were particulars about the way teachers planned together, the evidence of student-centered classrooms, and the power of long-term co-teaching relationships. It was through the cross-case analysis that three overall patterns of co-teaching at the selected site came forward. First, each co-teacher described one "pinnacle" co-teaching partner that made for a highly memorable experience and became the metric to which all other co-teaching relationships were compared. Second, experiencing a negative co-teaching experience had a significantly damaging impact on the teachers involved. And finally, the reality of balancing the power and responsibilities between co-teachers at the selected site was specific to each individual partnership and looked different from other partnerships and what the research advocated.