Geared as an invitation for undergraduates, beginning graduate students, we present a pedagogical introduction to one- dimensional topological phases-in particular, the Su­Schrieff er-Heeger model. In the process, we delve upon ideas of entanglement using the correlator method and the von­Neumann density-matrix method, geometric phase, polari­zation, transport signatures and the role of electron-electron interactions. Through hands-on numerical experiments, whose codes are shared, we try to drive home the message why a program of simulating quantum electronics with topological toy models is the storehouse for discovering fantastic physics ideas.