A practical method for short-term operations of large-scale hydropower plants divides all hydropower plants into three categories using operation characteristics such as system hierarchy, space attributes, task requirements, and schedule particularity. A strategy for adjusting spillage based on peak-shaving response and a strategy for equal load reduction in off-peak hours check and adjust power generation of hydropower plants with specified dispatching modes. For medium- and small-sized cascaded hydropower plants, the load distribution among plants is optimized with an objective of minimizing total power release subject to control condition of total generation profile. For large-size cascaded hydropower plants, an optimization model for peak-shaving operations and a method for balancing power plants with equal load rate are combined to respond to system peak demands and guarantee power balance in all periods.