Theme from Character Details

What a character says, does, and learns reveals the theme (good versus evil, courage, greed, kindness); theme versus topic.

Warm-up, learn, try it together, practice, then a quick check. About 15 minutes.

What children learn in Level 47

At the top of the mountain is the theme: the message or lesson a story teaches.
Don't mix it up with the topic. The topic is a word or two: greed. The theme is a whole sentence: being greedy can leave you with nothing.
Authors don't usually say the theme. You find it in what the characters say, do, and learn.
Read Bear's Honey and look for those clues.
Bear says it's all mine, hides the honey, and loses it. Bear learns: if I had shared, my friends would be here. Theme: being greedy can leave you with nothing.
Many stories share big themes: good versus evil, courage, greed, and kindness.

Georgia's K-12 English Language Arts Standards:

4.T.T.1.c — Identify and describe common themes in texts (e.g., good vs. evil) that are revealed through details about characters. (I)
4.P.EICC.3.f — Make, track, and support inferences about different levels of meaning within the text. (I)