One kick when cold is pretty tough. You have to get the gas flowing to the cylinders so 2-3 kicks cold is acceptable in my book. When hot one kick should suffice. Make sure your points are set properly, your plugs are good and properly gapped, your ignition system is in good shape, carbs are properly tuned and jetted. Essentially make sure everything is set as per the manual, compression is good, etc.
As for how a kick starter works, when you kick it it spins the engine, sucks in gas and starts the motor. Same thing electric start does, just using man power not electrical.