The dealer starts every deal with a shuffle and then burns a card removing it from play.  After you make your bet, the dealer and you form two-card hands.  The card dealt face up held by the dealer is called the upcard.  If this card happens to be an ace, you may get insurance.  You now have the choice of either improving your hand at the risk of busting it or waiting for the outcome of the dealer’s play.  After both hands are played out, your bet is settled.  Play continues with a new deal from the remaining deck until usually after a predetermined number of cards have been played at which point the deck is reshuffled and another card burned.