The COVID-19 pandemic quickly and drastically changed the field of education in 2020. Teachers faced challenges when confined to their homes and had to begin emergency remote teaching with their students. It is important to recognize what these teachers experienced and find ways to prepare for a crisis-prompted teaching situation in the future. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of Pennsylvania elementary classroom teachers who engaged in emergency remote teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic. Semi-structured Zoom interviews of eight elementary teachers who participated in emergency remote teaching provided data for qualitative phenomenological analysis. Data were reduced, and five themes were discovered: emotional stress with the transition to emergency remote teaching, technological and instructional barriers, changes in content, pedagogy and technology use, increased workload and self-reliance, and positive relationships with students and colleagues. Mishra and Koehler's (2006) technological, pedagogical, and content knowledge (TPACK) framework was a foundation for this study. This study shows that school districts need to be better prepared to enter a crisis-prompted teaching situation. Teachers should receive professional development on technological devices and platforms. This training should be practical and lead to the use of the platforms in conjunction with a 1:1 device program to allow teachers to be prepared for virtual teaching environments. The practical implications of this study include training and policies related to pandemic or emergency teaching planning. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]