Questions & Answers about Die Note ist leider sehr schlecht.
Does Note mean a written note or a musical note here?
Neither! In a school context, die Note means a grade or mark on a test. If you want to talk about a written note, you would use die Notiz instead.
Why is the adverb leider in the middle of the sentence instead of at the beginning?
In standard German sentences, adverbs like leider (unfortunately) often come right after the conjugated verb (ist). You can put it at the beginning for emphasis, but remember that the verb must stay in the second position: Leider ist die Note sehr schlecht.
How would the word order change if I turned this into a weil (because) clause?
Since weil is a subordinating conjunction, it kicks the conjugated verb to the very end of its clause. If you wanted to say "I am sad because the grade is unfortunately very bad," it would be: Ich bin traurig, weil die Note leider sehr schlecht ist.